>  PRINCETON,  N.  J.  *^ 


BX  7233  .H37  H4 

Hepworth,  George  H.  1833- 

1902. 
Herald  sermons 


HERALD   SERMONS 


BY 


UN  23  1919 


V 


GEORGE  H.  HEPWORTH 

AUTHOR  OF    '' HIRAM  GOLF's  RELIGION,"   "tHEY  MET  IN   HEAVEN," 
"the  life   BEYOND,"  ETC. 


» 


NEW  YORK 

K.  P.  DUTTON  &  COMPANY 

31    WEST  TWENTY-THIRD  STREET 
1894 


Copyright,  1894. 
E.   P.  Button  &  Co. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

A   Happy   New-Year 46 

A  Man  and  a  Woman 225 

A  Providential  Man 247 

A  Wasted  Life 56 

All  Men  are  Self-made 122 

An  Age  of  Religious  Inquiry 199 

Bearing  Good  Fruit 133 

Christmas   Day 220 

I)(^  What  You  Think  is  Right 1 54 

PIASTER   Morning 40 

False  Ideas  of  Salvation 194 

"  Feed  My  Lambs  " 107 

God's  Love  and  Man's 79 

Heroes  and  Heroines 127 

How  TO  Bear   Burdens 183 

JuDGiNCr   Kindly 91 

Little   People   Who   Live    LnrLE   Lives 143 

Man's   Littleness  and  Greatness 74 

More  ap.out   Heaven 11 

One   Fold  and  One  Shepherd 188 

Only  a   Step  to  Heaven 102 

Our  Homes 17 

iii 


IV  CONTENTS. 


PAGE 


Prayer 85 

Resignation 23 

Science  and  the  Soul 204 

Searching  after  God 171 

Shall  We  Know  Each  Other  There  ? 51 

The  Best  Kind  of  Religion 112 

The  Best  Thing  to  Do 166 

The  Bible 215 

The  Discipline  of  Life 139 

The  Duty  of  the  Church 236 

The  Immortal  Soul 29 

The   Ministry  of  Angels 62 

The  Mystery  of  Christmas 35 

The  Problem  of  Poverty 97 

The  Value  of   Money 230 

Theaters  and  their  Influence 241 

Views  of  Death 68 

Vital  Religion — What  is  it? 149 

When  We  Come  and  When  We  Go 177 

Where  is  Heaven  ? 5 

Which  Church  is  Christ's? 209 

Why  Do  We  Suffer? 117 

You  Shall  Have  Strength , 160 


INTRODUCTION. 


It  will  naturally  be  supposed,  since  I  am  a 
clergyman,  that  the  idea  of  printing  sermons  in 
the  Sunday  edition  of  the  Herald,  instead  of  a 
leading  editorial  on  some  news  topic,  originated 
with  myself.  That,  however,  is  not  the  case,  and 
I  hasten  to  place  the  credit  for  this  journalistic 
innovation  where  it  belongs. 

Just  before  his  return  to  Europe  on  one  occa- 
sion, Mr.  Bennett  entered  my  room  in  the  down- 
town office,  and  after  a  few  casual  remarks  about 
the  conduct  of  the  paper  asked  this  question : 

"  If  the  Herald  is  helpful  on  secular  subjects 
during  the  week,  why  should  it  not  be  helpful  on 
Sunday  in  matters  pertaining  to  religion?  " 

Not  quite  understanding  the  drift  of  his  ques- 
tion, I  asked  him  to  state  it  once  more.  He  an- 
swered : 


2  INTRODUCTION. 

"  My  idea  of  a  great  journal  is  that  it  should 
satisfy  the  spiritual  as  well  as  the  intellectual 
needs  of  its  readers.  If  we  publish  a  paper  on 
Sunday,  why  should  we  not  have  a  leader  in 
which  some  religious  topic  is  discussed?  Reli- 
gion is  worth  as  much  as  the  tariff  or  any  other 
political  issue.  Why,  then,  should  it  be  ignored 
as  it  is  by  all  the  newspapers  of  the  country?" 

"  It  would  be  an  invasion  of  a  field  occupied  by 
papers  specially  devoted  to  that  purpose,"  I  re- 
plied, cautiously. 

"  But  there  are  tens  of  thousands  who  never  see 
a  religious  paper,"  he  replied,  "  and  tens  of  thou- 
sands more  who  never  go  to  church.  Why  should 
not  the  Herald  supply  them  with  wholesome  sug- 
gestions concerning  the  present  and  the  future?  " 

"  It  would  be  a  bold  experiment,"  I  said,  with 
some  hesitation. 

For  a  moment  he  sat  in  silence,  and  then,  as 
though  he  had  suddenly  reached  a  conclusion,  he 
said : 

**  It  is  an  experiment  worth  trying." 

And  so  the  matter  was  decided. 

**  I  wish  you,"  he  added,  with  an  unusual  im- 
pressiveness  of  manner,  "  to  avoid  everything  in 


INTRODUCTION.  3 

the  shape  of  controversy.  Take  a  broad  and  Hb- 
eral  view  of  all  denominations.  You  must  not  be 
sectarian.  Treat  the  unbeliever  as  generously  as 
you  do  the  believer.  Dig  down  below  the  foun- 
dations of  mere  dogma,  and  simply  tell  the  people 
what  is  necessary  to  an  honest  life.  There  must 
be  a  good  many  things  which  everybody  either 
accepts  or  would  like  to  accept  as  true,  and  they 
will  furnish  you  with  topics  enough." 

These  large  instructions  I  have  tried  to  obey. 
They  are  quite  within  the  line  of  my  work  while 
in  the  ministry.  I  know  very  little  about  the- 
ology and  care  less  for  it.  The  Sermon  on  the 
Mount  is  about  all  I  need,  and  I  have  found  dur- 
ing a  prolonged  career  that  to  heed  its  admoni- 
tions keeps  me  very  busy  and  leaves  slender 
leisure  for  theological  speculation. 

There  are  men  and  women  in  the  world  who 
are  entangled  by  strange  perplexities  and  over- 
burdened by  struggles  and  sorrows.  They  are 
tempted  and  tried  in  many  ways.  If  they  had  a 
larger  faith  they  would  be  happier.  If  they  could 
be  assured  that  the  pains  of  the  present  are  not 
without  a  providential  significance;  that  a  future 
awaits  them  in  which  they  will  have  a  larger  op- 


4  INTRODUCTION. 

portunity ;  that  God  is  not  neglectful  of  their  in- 
terests ;  that  Christ  is  ready  to  extend  a  helping 
hand ;  that  the  angels  of  heaven  are  within  call, 
and  will  render  whatever  assistance  they  may — if 
they  can  be  persuaded  of  these  truths,  they  will 
have  all  they  want,  and  theological  dogmas  would 
only  be  useless  lumber. 

These  sermons  have  been  written  with  the  hope 
of  smoothing  the  pathway  of  the  troubled  and 
furnishing  them  with  stepping-stones  to  higher 
things.  If  in  any  degree  they  achieve  that  end,  I 
shah  be  more  than  satisfied  with  the  task  I  have 
undertaken. 

Mr.  Bennett,  I  am  sure,  will  permit  me  to  dedi- 
cate this  little  volume  to  him  in  token  of  a  friend- 
ship which  has  lasted  many  years. 

George  H.  Hepworth. 


HERALD  SERMONS. 


WHERE    IS    HEAVEN  ? 

"  And  Elisha  prayed,  and  said,  Lord,  I  pray  thee,  open  his  eyes, 
that  he  may  see.  And  the  Lord  opened  the  eyes  of  the  young 
man ;  and  he  saw :  and,  behold,  the  mountain  was  full  of  horses 
aid  chariots  of  fire  round  about  Elisha." — 2  Kings  vi.  17. 

Nobody  knows  where  heaven  is,  but  everybody 
hopes  there  is  a  heaven  somewhere.  To  say  that 
it  is  a  condition  of  mind  is  a  misleading  use  of  lan- 
guage, an  intangible  abstraction  of  no  practical  use. 
It  is  either  a  place  or  it  is  an  hallucination. 

If  a  heavenly  frame  of  mind  is  all  there  is  of 
heaven,  then  the  possession  is  notliing  to  boast  of 
and  may  end  with  the  last  gasp  of  life ;  but  if  it 
is  a  place  whose  boundary-line  we  cross  at  the 
moment  of  death,  in  which  our  intellectual  and 
spiritual  activity  will  have  unbounded  scope, 
where  souls  can  grow   unhampered  by  the  cruel 

5 


6  HERALD    SERMONS. 

and  repressing  limitations  of  the  body,  then  we 
have  a  series  of  motives  which  irradiate  the  pres- 
ent and  fill  the  future  with  the  glow  and  promise 
of  a  sunrise  after  the  sunset. 

We  cannot  see  heaven,  and  for  that  reason  a 
doubt  hangs  in  the  sky.  But  there  are  so  many 
things  which  we  cannot  see  that  such  an  argument 
becomes  enfeebled.  On  an  ordinary  night  we  can 
see  perhaps  two  or  three  thousand  separate  stars ; 
with  a  good  field-glass  the  number  may  easily 
be  increased  tenfold ;  with  the  Lick  telescope  on 
Mount  Hamilton  at  least  a  million  are  visible. 
Our  imperfect  vision  can  discover  but  a  small  part 
of  the  wonders  of  creation.  There  are  invisible 
worlds  all  round  us,  revealed  by  optical  instru- 
ments ;  and  still  other  worlds  which  no  instru- 
ments yet  invented  can  discover.  What  we  can 
see,  therefore,  is  by  no  means  the  limit  of  what  is. 

It  is  interesting  to  ask  whether  any  one,  under 
any  circumstances,  has  seen  what  is  to  most  of  us 
invisible.  The  text  we  have  chosen  contains  a 
marvelous  statement.  The  prophet  and  the  youth 
were  side  by  side.  There  was  no  defect  in  the 
vision  of  the  latter,  for  he  could  see  the  hills  and 
the    clouds    as    clearly  as   the  former.      But    the 


WHERE    IS    HEAVEN?  7 

prophet's  eyes  were  gifted  with  a  facuhy  unknown 
to  the  stripHng  who  attended  him.  He  saw  what 
was  in  the  air  as  well  as  what  was  on  the  ground, 
and  the  sight  gave  him  courage.  The  young 
man  was  dismayed,  for  a  host  of  Syrians  with 
spears  had  come  to  make  them  prisoners ;  but 
the  prophet  was  calm  and  serene  and  sure  of  the 
victory. 

Then  something  happened  to  the  young  man's 
eyes,  and  for  a  brief  moment  he  saw  what  he  had 
never  before  looked  upon,  and  what  he  probably 
never  looked  upon  thereafter.  They  were  the  same 
eyes  that  he  had  always  used,  but  an  additional 
faculty  had  been  given  them,  and  they  caught  a 
glimpse  of  the  horses  and  chariots,  the  army  of 
spiritual  creatures  who,  as  Milton  asserts,  walk  the 
earth  unseen  both  when  we  wake  and  when  we 
sleep. 

If  it  is  possible  to  believe,  first,  that  heaven  is 
just  as  truly  a  locality  as  any  one  of  the  United 
States,  and,  second,  that  though  we  may  not  be 
able  to  see  the  citizens  of  this  celestial  common- 
wealth they  can  see  us,  we  are  traveling  along 
the  highway  to  some  very  important  truths.  If 
heaven  is  correctly  described  in  these  statements, 


8  HERALD    SERMONS. 

it  becomes  vivid  and  thrilling.  We  have  **  a  heart 
for  any  fate";  can  pass  through  any  experience 
unscathed ;  can  even  open  the  door  of  the  tomb 
and  lay  the  tired  sleeper  on  one  of  the  shelves  of 
its  recesses ;  can  go  back  to  our  duties  and  strug- 
gles with  an  aching  but  a  hopeful  heart ;  can  ban- 
ish the  word  "  farewell  "  from  our  vocabulary,  w^ith 
the  conviction  that  the  departing  member  of  the 
family  has  simply  gone  on  a  journey,  at  the  end 
of  which  he  will  await  our  coming.  The  sun  has 
risen  for  us,  and  its  fructifying  light  penetrates 
every  nook  and  corner  of  our  sorrows. 

Whether  we  are  privileged  to  see  what  Elisha's 
attendant  saw  or  not,  if  we  feel  sure  that  he  really 
saw  what  is  recorded  we  may  be  content  to  re- 
main blind.  We  do  not  care  so  much  to  see 
heaven  for  ourselves  as  to  be  certain  that  some- 
body has  seen  it,  either  prophet  or  servant.  If 
heaven  is  there,  we  ask  no  more. 

There  is  a  wild  and  almost  reckless  interest  in 
this  topic  nowadays.  Above  the  din  and  confu- 
sion of  our  material  life  we  hear  voices  which  tell 
us  that  heaven  is  not  far  off  and  that  the  two 
worlds  can  talk  to  each  other.  Bands  of  earnest 
men  and  women  gather  when  the  day's  work  is 


WHERE    IS    HEAVEN?  9 

over  in  the  belief  that  these  voices  come  across 
the  wild  waste  and  bear  messages  of  affection  and 
advice. 

Human  nature  has  an  intense  longing,  a  burning 
thirst,  an  unappeased  hunger  for  facts  of  this  kind. 
Even  reason  is  sometimes  held  in  abeyance,  or 
chained  up  for  the  time  being,  that  the  emotions 
may  have  full  and  free  play.  Discrimination  is 
paralyzed,  and  the  doors  of  the  heart  are  thrown 
wide  open  for  folly  as  well  as  wisdom  to  enter. 

There  are  men  and  women  who  tell  us  of  in- 
credible experiences ;  but  these  experiences  are 
not  to  be  judged  as  false  merely  because  they  are 
incredible.  On  the  contrary,  we  are  inclined  to 
ask  if  anything  is  incredible,  and,  if  so,  who  shall 
fix  the  limit  of  belief.  There  are  men  of  science 
of  large  reputations,  whose  word  has  weight  the 
globe  over,  w^ho  look  us  straight  in  the  face  and 
tell  us  wonderful  stories.  There  are  psychical  so- 
cieties whose  members  are  cold  investigators,  and, 
while  they  throw  aside  much  that  is  floating  about, 
call  our  attention  to  a  residue  that  needs  explana- 
tion. Society  is  ablaze  with  this  sort  of  thing,  and 
assuredly  there  are  a  thousand  extravagances  in 
the  air. 


lO  HERALD    SERMONS. 

But  the  real  question  is  behind  all  this.  Is  it 
true  that  in  this  latter  quarter  of  the  nineteenth 
century  there  is  a  spiritual  as  well  as  a  material 
revelation  ?  While  some  have  stumbled  on  in- 
ventions which  have  altered  the  whole  complexion 
of  our  social  life,  have  others  discovered  truths 
which  render  the  spiritual  life  more  brilliant  and 
hopeful  ? 

Here,  then,  we  find  ourselves  groping  through 
the  darkness.  Heaven  is  a  place  or  it  is  nothing. 
Heaven  is  peopled  with  beings  who  may  not  be 
seen  because  our  eyes  are  not  fitted  for  that  kind 
of  vision.  But  some  have  seen  them  in  the  past, 
and  others,  in  the  present,  declare  that  they  have 
been  equally  privileged.  If  we  take  the  first  step 
we  must  finish  the  journey.  There  is  no  halting 
spot  where  we  can  say.  Thus  far  and  no  farther. 
Either  heaven  is  round  about  us,  and  the  possi- 
bility of  communication  is  a  fact,  or  we  have  been 
led  strangely  astray. 

The  affirmation  ennobles  all  things  ;  the  denial 
leaves  us  wringing  our  hands  in  mute  despair. 


MORE   ABOUT    HEAVEN. 

"  But  is  passed  from  death  unto  life." — John  v.  24. 

The  editorial  of  last  Sunday  on  heaven  has 
caused  so  much  suggestive  comment  on  the  part 
of  our  readers  that  we  are  inclined  to  look  at  an- 
other phase  of  the  subject. 

The  careful  student  discovers  that  a  belief  in 
immortality  is  inherent  in  the  human  race ;  that  it 
is  equally  the  peculiarity  of  the  most  cultured  na- 
tions, as  the  Egyptians,  the  Greeks,  the  Romans, 
and  the  most  barbarous  tribes,  as  the  American 
Indians,  the  Zulus,  and  the  New  Zealanders. 

This  belief  takes  fantastic  shapes  at  times,  but 
that  is  matter  of  little  consequence.  We  may  even 
smile  at  the  childlike  credulity  with  which  the  sav- 
age places  on  the  grave  of  his  chief  the  food  to 
which  he  has  been  accustomed,  and  murders  a 
stalwart  comrade  that  he  may  carry  the  news  of  a 
recently  fought  battle  to  the  dead  warrior,  who  is 


12  HERALD    SERMONS. 

Still  interested  in  earthly  affairs ;  but  the  important 
fact  is  that  he  believes  in  the  future  quite  as  firmly 
as  he  believes  in  the  present,  and  has  no  doubt 
whatever  that  the  departed  have  a  local  habitation, 
between  which  and  their  old  homes  there  is  possi- 
bility of  communication. 

If  we  may  not  say  positively  that  there  is  neither 
a  race  nor  a  tribe  which  is  an  exception  to  this 
rule,  we  may  safely  assert  that  no  race  and  no 
tribe  has  yet  been  found,  even  in  the  profoundest 
depths  of  barbarism,  where  some  crude  notions  of 
a  future  life  do  not  prevail. 

The  general  conception  may  be  illustrated  by  a 
legend  from  the  Tonga  Islands.  It  runs  that  long 
ago  a  canoe  on  its  way  home  from  Fiji  was  caught 
in  a  gale  and  driven  to  Bolotu,  where  it  was  sup- 
posed the  gods  dwelt.  The  explorers  found  the 
island  covered  with  beautiful  flowers  and  the 
juiciest  fruits,  the  air  filled  with  indescribable 
fragrance,  birds  of  exquisite  plumage,  wild  ani- 
mals which  were  immortal  except  when  killed  for 
the  gods  to  eat.  When  they  landed,  they  found 
it  impossible  to  pluck  the  fruit  because  it  was  only 
shadowy  fruit ;  they  walked  through  shadowy 
houses  and  trees  as  through  the  air,  but  were  so 


MOKE    ABOUT    HEAVEN.  I 3 

affected  by  what  they  had  seen  that  soon  after 
they  reached  home  they  died. 

This  is  all  fabulous  and  all  whimsical,  but  some 
such  realistic  story,  with  a  thousand  modifications, 
according  to  climate  and  tribal  peculiarities,  is  to 
be  found  in  all  quarters  of  the  globe. 

In  Madagascar  a  table  covered  with  delicacies 
was  regularly  set  in  the  dead  king's  mausoleum, 
under  the  notion  that  the  spirit  of  the  monarch 
would  occasionally  return  and  partake  of  the  food 
he  was  fond  of  during  his  lifetime. 

If  these  odd  customs  w^ere  found  only  in  certain 
localities  we  might  brush  them  aside  as  of  little  im- 
portance. But  when  you  learn  that  crude  concep- 
tions of  heaven  are  coeval  with  the  exercise  of 
human  intelligence — that  man  no  sooner  thought 
of  this  life  than  he  began  to  think  of  another  life, 
as  though  it  was  impossible  to  believe  in  the  one 
without  believing  in  the  other — you  cannot  resist 
the  feeling  that  immortality  is  something  more 
than  a  mere  longing  in  dogmatic  shape,  and  that 
it  is  just  as  natural  to  look  forward  as  to  look  back- 
ward. 

We  may  have  little  interest  in  the  Persian  idea 
of  heaven,  or  in  the  conception  of  the  peasant  of 


14  HERALD    SERMONS. 

Babylon  or  Nineveh,  or  in  that  of  the  scholar 
of  Egypt  or  the  warrior  crowd  that  filled  the 
streets  of  Athens  or  Rome,  but  the  fact  that  every 
one  of  these  people  had  some  idea,  and  that  civili- 
zation, so  far  from  crushing  it  out,  simply  gave  it 
a  nobler  form,  is  a  matter  of  very  great  conse- 
quence. 

The  Norwegian's  Valhalla  is  nothing  to  us.  The 
doings  of  the  gods  on  Olympus  may  not  meet  our 
approval.  The  custom  of  the  Chinese  to  light  a 
lantern  when  they  make  a  feast  in  honor  of  the 
dead,  that  the  beggars  and  lepers  of  the  other 
world  may  find  their  way  to  the  banquet ;  the 
habit  of  the  Hottentot,  who  shuts  the  door  when 
his  parent  dies,  makes  a  hole  through  the  side  of 
the  house,  and  removes  the  body  in  that  way  be- 
cause he  is  afraid  of  ghosts  and  does  not  want  the 
dead  to  come  back — these  peculiarities  have  no 
weight  with  us,  except  as  they  show  the  univer- 
sality of  belief  in  another  life  and  the  irresistible 
conviction  that  death  does  not  destroy  and  can 
only  remove. 

The  Christian  religion  is  lacking  in  a  detailed 
description  of  heaven.  The  rough  realism  of  other 
systems  is  not  found  there.     This  is  one  of  its  pe- 


MORE    ABOUT    IIEAVEX.  1 5 

CLiliarities.  Christ  was  reticent  on  the  subject. 
He  simply  said  he  came  from  Heaven,  and  then 
added  that  after  the  crucifixion  He  should  return. 
He  told  His  friends  on  one  occasion  that  He  should 
prepare  a  place  for  them,  that  they  and  He  might 
dwell  together;  and  on  another  occasion  He  prom- 
ised the  thief  who  was  suffering  death  at  His  side 
that  that  very  day  he  should  be  with  Him  in  Para- 
dise, He  also  rebuked  Peter  by  reminding  him 
that  if  He  needed  help  after  the  shadows  of  Geth- 
semane  He  had  the  power  to  call  upon  legions  of 
angels  who  would  come  to  His  assistance.  Beyond 
these  hints  we  have  almost  nothing.  We  are  not 
satisfied,  indeed,  for  we  should  be  glad  to  know 
more  ;  but  if  we  are  sure  of  the  fact  that  there  is  a 
heaven,  why  need  we  trouble  ourselves  as  to  where 
it  is  situated — whether  close  to  the  earth,  or  in  the 
interstellar  spaces,  or  in  some  region  unknown  to 
astronomy  ? 

The  world  has  always  believed  that  we  shall  not 
die,  but  simply  lift  the  veil  and  enter  a  new  terri- 
tory. That  belief  has  been  a  potent  factor  in  the 
conduct  of  all  races ;  has  made  men  resigned  un- 
der burdens,  courageous  on  the  battle-field,  equal 
to  any  sacrifice.      It  has  created  and  encouraged 


1 6  HERALD    SERMONS. 

the  heroic  clement  of  human  nature,  and  made  the 
last  day  of  earth  the  best  day  of  life,  because  the 
soul  opens  a  door  on  the  other  side  of  the  tomb 
and  enters  a  world  where  there  are  no  more  tears. 
Is  not  that  enough? 


OUR    HOMES. 

"  And  he  left  them,  and  went  out  of  the  city  into  Bethany;  and 
he  lodged  there." — Matt.  xxi.  17. 

After  a  day  of  continuous  harassment  in  Jeru- 
salem Jesus  needed  the  repose  which  only  confid- 
ing friendship  could  furnish.  By  the  light  of  the 
stars  he  found  his  way  to  the  little  village  of  Beth- 
any, two  miles  distant,  and  enjoyed  the  hospitality 
of  a  household  consisting  of  Martha,  Mary,  and 
Lazarus. 

It  is  left  to  the  imagination  to  picture  that  group 
of  four,  for  history  has  given  us  only  broad  out- 
lines and  is  neglectful  of  details.  What  comfort 
came  to  that  tired  heart,  what  subjects  were  dis- 
cussed, what  hopes  or  fears  were  indulged  in 
during  the  evening's  conversation,  we  shall  never 
know.  But  we  may  venture  to  say  that  this  Son 
of  God  found  rest  and  strength  within  the  walls  of 
that  happy  Hebrew  home.     It  was  like  a  strain  of 

17 


1 8  HERALD    SERMONS. 

soft  music  to  the  traveler  who  has  sought  his  couch, 
and  he  sank  into  dreamless  sleep  under  its  soothing- 
influence. 

The  home  is  our  asylum,  and  the  love  of  dear 
ones  is  our  defense.  In  the  plan  of  Divine  Provi- 
dence the  home  occupies  a  position  of  conspicuous 
importance.  A  happy  home  is  the  prophecy  of  a 
useful  life  for  every  child  reared  under  its  benig- 
nant watchfulness ;  a  home  in  which  discord  pre- 
vails sends  its  boys  and  girls  into  the  world  with 
handicapped  aspirations. 

The  child  who  carries  sweet  memories  with  him 
carries  also  a  shield  for  protection ;  but  he  who 
bears  embittered  memories  falls  easier  prey  to  the 
evils  which  will  attack.  A  happy  home  in  the 
background  throws  a  radiance  on  each  succeeding 
day,  even  though  the  day  be  stormy  and  tem- 
pestuous. 

The  good  father  lives  in  the  life  of  the  boy  long 
after  that  father  has  crossed  the  threshold  of  a 
cemetery,  and  the  good  mother  still  speaks  to  the 
daughter  when  that  daughter  has  children  of  her 
own. 

No  mortal  can  have  a  better  starting-point  than 
a  pious  and  soul-satisfying  home.      It  is  a  thou- 


OUR    HOMES.  19 

sand  times  better  to  have  an  honest  father  and  a 
true-hearted  mother  than  to  inherit  riches  or  social 
position.  An  empty  wallet  and  a  father's  blessing, 
a  gingham  gown  and  a  mother's  love,  are  a  safer 
equipment  for  the  attainment  of  happiness  than 
millions  of  money  without  the  blessing  and  the 
love. 

We  are  making  some  serious  mistakes  on  this 
subject,  and  they  will  cost  us  many  a  heartache 
by  and  by.  We  are  too  ambitious  for  our  chil- 
dren in  the  direction  of  social  prominence  and  too 
neglectful  of  them  in  the  direction  of  character. 

Daughters  are  brought  up  to  believe  that  the 
chief  end  of  life  is  to  marry  a  bank-account  and  an 
equipage  rather  than  a  man.  When  the  surplus 
becomes  a  deficit,  however,  as  it  sometimes  does, 
and  the  equipage  is  sold  under  the  hammer,  the 
poor  girl  wakes  up  to  the  discovery  that  she  has 
had  an  establishment  for  a  few  years,  but  not  a 
home.  The  logic  of  events  is  relentless,  and  mu- 
tual affection,  which  is  the  only  thing  worth  living 
for,  since  it  sweetens  and  deepens  with  adversity, 
is  found  to  be  wanting.  A  love  that  depends  for 
its  continuance  on  good  fortune  has  very  small 
value,  and  yet  marriage  vows  are  taken  every  day 


20  HERALD    SERMONS. 

which  have  their  origin  in  avarice,  and  will  cer- 
tainly be  broken  unless  the  avarice  continues  to  be 
satisfied. 

There  is  no  other  foundation  for  a  true  home 
than  the  union  of  two  souls  by  the  bonds  of  holy 
afifection.  Other  experiments  have  been  tried,  but 
no  substitute  for  that  affection  has  yet  been  found, 
nor  is  it  likely  that  it  will  be. 

The  end  to  be  sought  is  happiness,  and  if  you 
fail  in  that  you  fail  in  everything.  A  wounded 
heart  is  not  healed  by  costly  medicament,  and 
riches  never  yet  suppressed  a  sigh.  Grief  over 
withered  hopes  cannot  be  assuaged  by  diamonds 
and  splendor,  and  many  a  woman  has  been  driven 
to  desperation  and  wrong-doing  because,  in  spite 
of  her  credit  at  the  bankers',  she  found  it  impossi- 
ble to  live  on  indifference  and  neglect. 

We  must  throw  our  financial  theories  to  the 
winds  and  be  brave  enough  to  obey  natural  law. 
A  man  is  a  man,  and  a  woman  is  a  woman.  What- 
ever else  he  needs,  the  man  needs  love  most  of  all, 
for  this  is  a  hard  life  and  love  alone  keeps  him  in 
trim  for  the  contest.  If  he  cannot  have  it  he  takes 
excitement  instead,  and  then  the  end  is  not  far  off. 
Whatever  else  the  woman  craves,  it  is  all  subor- 


OUR    HOMES.  21 

dinate,  whether  she  knows  it  or  not,  to  the  confid- 
ing affection  of  a  manly  man  ;  and  if  that  is  denied 
her  her  nature  becomes  volcanic  and  irrepressible. 

Without  the  restraining-  influence  of  love  we  all 
become  more  or  less  demoniac.  But  if  we  have  it 
we  can  part  with  everything  besides  and  still  be 
content.  That  is  the  verdict  of  the  generations, 
and  it  cannot  be  reversed. 

In  your  home,  therefore,  and  regarding  your 
children,  you  should  so  teach  the  boys  and  girls 
that  they  will  develop  independence  of  character 
and  moral  principle.  What  the  world  may  say 
should  influence  them  very  little,  but  what  they 
themselves  think  is  right  should  influence  them  a 
great  deal.  Plain  and  solid  common  sense  is  worth 
more  than  anything  else.  Of  two  lovers  a  good 
poor  man  is  better  than  a  bad  rich  man.  Pictures 
and  furniture  and  rugs  and  footmen  are  desirable 
in  their  way,  but  you  cannot  afford  to  give  a  hu- 
man heart  for  them.  It  may  be  unpleasant  to  live 
in  a  side-street,  but  a  side-street  with  peace  is  better 
than  the  avenue  with  misery.  Your  acquaintances 
may  shrug  their  shoulders — it  is  their  privilege  to 
do  so  if  they  choose — but  if  the  home  is  bright  and 
cheerful  what  care  you  ? 


22  HERALD    SERMONS. 

If  fathers  and  mothers  would  see  to  it  that  their 
homes  are  made  happy,  and  have  no  other  desire 
than  that  their  children  should  make  happy  homes 
for  themselves,  this  barter  and  sale  which  enters  so 
largely  into  our  views  of  marriage  would  cease,  and 
the  millennium  would  come  this  way. 

What  this  old  world  needs  is  sterling  and  un- 
wavering moral  principle,  and  the  independence 
to  stand  by  it.  These  grand  qualities  of  character 
must  be  taught  in  the  home  by  parents  who  be- 
lieve in  them  and  exemplify  them  in  their  own 
lives,  or  they  will  never  be  acquired  at  all. 

After  that  you  can  trust  both  sons  and  daugh- 
ters to  reach  a  safe  conclusion  when  they  are  called 
upon  to  leave  the  hearthstone  of  their  childhood 
and  make  a  new  home  for  themselves. 

They  will  have  already  learned  that  though 
riches  and  happiness  sometimes  go  together,  it  is 
better  to  depend  on  happiness  rather  than  riches 
for  a  safe  journey  through  life. 


RESIGNATION. 

"  O  my  Father,  tliy  will  be  done.'' — Matt.  xxvi.  42. 

The  man  of  faith  lives  with  more  satisfaction  to 
himself  and  with  greater  benefit  to  his  kind  than 
the  man  of  doubt. 

We  do  not  refer  to  the  man  whose  brain  con- 
tains a  mere  muddle  of  beliefs,  who  has  prejudices 
and  superstitions  instead  of  convictions,  but  to  him 
who  feels  sure  that  there  is  an  eternal  right  and  an 
eternal  wrong,  that  the  right  is  worthy  of  his  sup- 
port at  all  hazards,  and  the  wrong  will  bring  him 
to  physical  and  spiritual  bankruptcy  in  the  long 
run. 

We  do  not  need  a  long  creed,  but  we  do  need  a 
few  verities  as  a  basis  for  action.  The  Thirt3'-nine 
Articles  may  seem  very  prolix,  and  the  Institutes 
of  Calvin  may  not  commend  themselves  to  our 
best  judgment,  but  our  rejection  of  them  does  not 
constitute  us  heretics  in  the  sight  of  God,  although 
men  may  excommunicate  us. 

23 


24  HERALD    SERMONS. 

If  we  believe  that  the  universe  is  ruled  by  love 
as  well  as  power;  that  the  outcome  of  virtue  is 
happiness  and  the  result  of  evil  is  misery ;  if  we 
see  a  Providence  in  the  events  of  life  and  feel  that 
we  can  communicate  with  that  Providence  by 
means  of  what  is  called  prayer;  if  we  have  faith 
in  another  life  where  the  freed  soul  will  have 
larger  opportunities  than  its  environment  has  per- 
mitted here ;  if  we  absorb  the  spirit  of  brotherly 
love  and  helpfulness  which  was  incarnated  in  the 
Christ — we  need  have  no  fears  as  to  our  fate  in 
the  future. 

Man's  creed  is  apt  to  be  a  long  one  ;  God's  creed 
is  very  short.  Short  as  it  is,  however,  you  will  have 
no  time  to  spare  if  you  shape  your  years  according 
to  its  requirements. 

Your  life,  everybody's  life,  has  its  pathetic  side, 
and  you  will  need  the  sympathy  of  God  if  you 
are  to  do  good  work. 

There  are  times  when  you  are  appalled  b)^  the 
situation  in  which  you  find  yourself.  There  is  no 
light  anywhere,  but  darkness  everywhere.  A  score 
of  friends  stand  by  you  and  give  you  what  comfort 
can  be  contained  in  words,  but  they  have  Hves  of 
their  own  to  live,  and  they  cannot  help  you  as  you 


RESIGNATION.  2$ 

must  be  helped  if  you  are  to  recover  from  the 
disaster. 

Human  friendship  is  precious,  but  much  more  is 
wanted.  Human  love  mingles  its  sighs  and  tears 
with  yours,  but  still  there  is  an  empty  place  in  your 
heart  which  neither  friendship  nor  love  can  fill. 

We  have  all  had  that  experience — a  heaviness 
which  no  arm  can  lighten,  a  dread  which  no  words 
can  dissipate,  a  weariness  which  no  one  within 
reach  can  brighten  with  hope. 

Is  there  no  comfort  anywhere,  no  consolation, 
no  unseen  influence  that  will  steal  into  the  soul 
with  transfiguring  power? 

The  agnostic  shakes  his  head  in  an  emergency 
like  that,  and  does  not  speak,  because  he  has  noth- 
ing to  say.  He  can  furnish  you  with  additional 
despair,  but  with  no  thought  which  will  afford  you 
resignation. 

"What  kind  of  a  world  is  this,"  you  ask  your- 
self, "  in  which  what  one  craves  most  is  beyond 
one's  reach?"  Is  there  no  remedy  anywhere 
for  your  disease  of  mind?  Are  you  left  alone  to 
struggle  as  you  can,  to  find  your  way  out  of  the 
grief  by  the  slow  process  of  forgetfulness? 

We  think  not.      Else  it  were  a  misfortune  to  be 


26  HERALD    SERMONS. 

born,  and  the  chief  blessing  is  to  get  rid  of  it  all 
in  childhood,  before  you  learn  that  life  is  nothing 
better  than  a  tragedy. 

Your  father  has  fallen  asleep,  perchance,  and 
when  you  call  him  he  will  not  answer.  The  eyes 
will  never  open  again,  the  lips  are  like  lips  of 
marble.  There  is  a  frightful  stillness  in  the  house, 
broken  only  by  the  muffled  beating  of  your  own 
heart  and  your  unrepressed  moans.  Is  that  the 
end  ?  Has  the  story  been  all  told  ?  Is  the  vol- 
ume of  filial  affection  closed,  and  clasped  with  an 
iron  clasp?  Have  you  said  farewell  forever,  and 
has  the  dear  one  taken  a  sudden  departure  into  the 
region  of  black  nothingness  ? 

Then  what  is  life  worth?  What  is  the  use  of 
loving  if  the  most  sacred  ties  are  snapped  when 
Death  taps  at  the  door?  He  is  better  off  than 
you  who  never  loved  at  all,  for  he  will  suffer  less, 
and  the  less  love  we  bestow  on  any  one  the  larger 
are  our  chances  of  happiness.  Let  us  henceforth 
care  for  self  alone  and  pay  no  heed  to  others. 

Or  it  may  be  that  a  child,  the  light  of  your 
home,  your  joy  and  pride,  lies  in  your  arms  with 
raging,  consuming,  relentless  fever.  Its  little  eyes 
look   into   yours   imploringly ;    its   little   arms  are 


RESKIXATIOX.  27 

tightly  clasped  about  your  neck.  Hope  dies  out 
of  your  heart,  and  the  inevitable,  like  the  shadow 
of  a  setting  sun,  throws  its  gloom  over  the  scene. 
The  babe  is  slipping  away  from  you,  and  carrying 
with  it  the  best  part  of  your  own  life ;  for  in  all 
the  earth  there  is  nothing  so  beautiful,  so  sublime, 
or  so  impressive  as  a  mother's  love. 

What  say  you  ?  What  has  any  one  to  say  ? 
The  man  of  doubt  is  at  your  side,  a  tender-hearted 
man,  full  of  human  sympathy,  and  willing  to  do 
what  he  can  to  assuage  your  grief;  but  what  can 
he  honestly  say  to  give  you  comfort  ?  Has  he  any 
balm  for  your  wounds,  any  solace  for  your  dis- 
tress?    Then  he  were  better  absent  than  present. 

But  Christ  comes,  or  some  kind  friend  who 
bears  His  message,  and  tells  you  of  the  house  not 
built  with  hands,  of  the  grave  as  the  bronze  gate 
through  which  we  enter  heaven,  of  a  time  of  meet- 
ing beyond  this  time  of  parting,  of  that  Being  who 
does  what  is  best  even  when  He  causes  the  tears 
to  flow,  only  asking  you  to  wait  patiently  in  faith 
that  some  day  you  will  see  that  He  was  right. 

What  a  change  comes  over  your  soul !  God's 
magic  has  hidden  a  smile  under  your  tears,  a  hope 
under  your  despair.      In  reposeful  faith  you  say, 


28  HERALD    SERMONS. 

''  Thy  will  be  done,"  and,  standing  at  the  grave 
of  father  or  of  child,  you  hft  your  eyes  to  the  blue 
sky  and  cry,  **  For  a  time,  good-by ;  we  shall  meet 
again  yonder." 

The  sad  side  of  life  has  a  rainbow,  and  hope 
makes  sorrow  easier  to  bear. 


THE    IMMORTAL    SOUL. 

"If  in  this  life  only  we  have  hope  in  Christ,  we  are  of  all  men 
most  miserable." — i  Cor.  xv.   19. 

If  a  man  lives  In  the  conviction  that  there  is 
nothing  for  liim  in  the  future  he  has  very  httle 
to  complain  of  when  the  time  comes  to  be  anni- 
hilated, because  he  has  had  all  he  expected  to 
get.  If,  however,  a  man  is  promised  another  life 
on  what  he  deems  good  authority,  and  makes  great 
sacrifices  in  order  to  fit  himself  for  it,  but  is  told 
when  nearing  the  end  that  the  promise  cannot  be 
kept,  he  is  "  of  all  men  most  miserable."  St.  Paul 
was  quite  right  in  declaring  that  such  a  disappoint- 
ment overtops  all  other  kinds. 

How  brief  is  the  span  of  human  life!  It  is  at 
best  only  an  isthm.us  'twixt  two  boundless  seas, 
the  past,  the  future — two  eternities.  Our  days 
and  months  and  years  go  by  so  noiselessly  that 
we  scarcely  note  the  footfalls  of  their  coming  or 
their  going.      Childhood  passes  into  youth  in  the 

29 


30  HERALD    SERMONS. 

twinkling  of  an  eye.  A  little  laughter,  an  hour's 
play  with  a  few  toys,  and  the  time  arrives  when 
childish  things  must  be  put  away.  Youth,  exuber- 
ant youth,  shortly  sobers  into  manhood.  A  dream 
or  two,  a  few  castles  in  the  air,  a  fleeting  vision  of 
divine  possibilities,  then  the  shoulders  broaden  to 
bear  heavier  burdens,  and  the  heart  recognizes  the 
graver  responsibilities  of  life.  Manhood  changes 
to  old  age  like  a  flash  of  lightning  in  a  summer 
cloud.  Some  hard  work,  some  short  years  of  ear- 
nest toil,  some  days  of  bitter  disappointment,  some 
nights  of  weary  weeping,  and  then  the  nerves  grow 
dull,  the  sight  becomes  dim,  the  snows  of  winter 
are  scattered  over  the  head,  the  hopes  of  earlier 
days  have  either  ripened  or  withered.  The  sun 
sets,  we  linger  in  the  twilight  for  a  few  moments, 
and  then  the  night  comes  down,  in  which  we  can 
neither  walk  nor  work. 

You  cannot  hold  on  to  your  years,  however 
strong  your  grasp  may  be.  They  will  slip  away 
from  you  in  spite  of  entreaty  or  menace.  When 
you  have  stood  on  the  sea-shore  you  have  perhaps 
tried  to  hold  a  handful  of  sand.  What  a  useless 
task  it  is!  It  falls  between  your  fingers  in  spite 
of  your  utmost  endeavor,  and  after  a  while,  when 


THE    IMMORTAL    SOUL.  3 1 

you  open  your  hand,  only  a  few  silvery  or  golden 
grains  are  left.  So  life  escapes,  and  every  present 
day  becomes  a  yesterday.  The  clock  ticks  the 
time  away  whether  you  are  hungry  or  well  fed, 
and  the  pendulum  swings  relentlessly  whether  you 
are  rich  or  poor.  "  And  the  same  thing,"  says 
Solomon,  "  happeneth  to  us  all." 

Now  here  is  a  curious  fact.  The  elm  by  the 
roadside  outlives  us.  The  rusty  sword  that  hangs 
on  your  library  wall,  telling  you  of  the  heroic 
deeds  of  a  former  generation,  will  be  received  by 
your  children's  children  after  you  have  been  laid 
in  your  resting-place.  The  pebble  which  you 
kick  off  the  sidewalk,  if  it  had  a  tongue,  would 
tell  you  the  story  of  this  earth  when  it  was  in  its 
very  infancy,  more  years  ago  than  your  imagina- 
tion can  conceive. 

The  elm,  the  rusty  sword,  the  worthless  pebble 
have  a  kind  of  eternal  life,  but  you  must  die. 
What  a  marvelous  statement!  How  incredible  it 
seems! 

Is  it  not  stranger  than  words  can  express  that 
any  thoughtful  man  should  assert  that  the  soul  is 
fenced  in  by  death,  and  that  the  road  it  has  trav- 
eled ends  at  the  grave?     The  body  may  be  satis- 


32  HERALD    SERMONS. 

fied  with  seventy  years,  but  not  the  mind.  The 
soul's  keen  appetite  is  just  whetted  when  it  is 
told  that  there  is  nothing  more  to  eat.  Bodies 
are  easily  sated,  but  by  the  time  they  are  ready 
to  drop  the  soul  within  them  has  just  begun  to 
learn  how  to  live.  Why,  then,  should  both  die  at 
the  same  moment? 

Why  was  the  soul  made  so  large,  if  this  life  is 
all  ?  If  you  were  told  that  Niagara  was  made  to 
drive  the  farmer's  grist-mill  for  a  single  day  and 
nothing  more,  you  could  not  believe  it.  If  you 
were  told  that  a  Corliss  engine  was  invented  to 
move  the  machinery  which  makes  a  single  pin, 
and  after  that  is  of  no  further  use,  what  would 
you  say?  Can  it,  then,  be  true  that  the  soul  of 
man  will  live  just  long  enough  to  find  out  that  it 
can  do  something,  and  then  be  told  that  it  shall 
never  have  an  opportunity  to  do  this  something? 

So  odd  an  anomaly  is  beyond  our  credence. 
There  is  a  pitiless  irony  in  the  statement  that  we 
no  sooner  gather  our  aspirations  together  and  set 
ourselves  sternly  to  some  noble  t.isk  than  our  day's 
work  is  over,  and  we  must  lay  aside  the  tools  and 
the  materials  with  which  we  know  we  can  build. 

Let  us  give  an  illustration.     Yonder  is  a  vessel 


THE    IMMORTAL    SOUL.  33 

about  to  be  launched.  The  plan  has  been  care- 
fully drawn  by  the  architect,  and  the  contractor 
has  chosen  his  timber  from  a  dozen  forests.  Now 
she  stands  complete,  and  the  workmen  with  their 
sledges  loosen  the  wedges,  and  she  slips  down  the 
ways  and  for  the  first  time  embraces  the  mighty 
deep  which  is  to  be  her  home.  How  gracefully 
she  floats — a  thing  of  life  and  beauty !  Plow 
promising  is  her  future!  She  is  able  to  bear  a 
thousand  tons'  burden  across  a  wintry  ocean,  in 
spite  of  mountainous  waves  and  northern  gale. 
She  will  laugh  at  the  tempest,  for  she  is  brave 
and  strong. 

We  board  her  for  a  trial-trip.  Her  white  sails 
waft  us  by  the  forts  and  through  the  Narrows  and 
around  the  light-ship.  Then  she  comes  back  and 
is  anchored  in  some  convenient  place.  Suppose 
we  tell  you  that  her  whole  mission  is  accomplished 
and  there  is  nothing  more  for  her  to  do.  You 
ask  in  wonder,  **  Why  build  her,  then?  Is  it  not 
folly  to  take  so  much  pains  for  a  trial-trip,  and 
then  leave  her  at  her  anchorage  to  rot  and  sink?  " 

The  same  may  be  said  of  the  soul.  This  brief 
life  is  only  the  trial-trip.  We  pass  by  a  few  buoys 
in  the  harbor  of  eternal  life,  we  stem  the  ebb  or 


34  HERALD    SERMONS. 

flood  tide  for  a  few  hours,  we  just  get  a  glimpse 
of  the  ocean  that  spreads  beyond  our  vision,  and 
then  what  we  call  death  intervenes.  With  the 
great  Atlantic  of  immortality  ahead  of  us  shall  we 
come  to  anchor  in  the  grave? 

It  cannot  be  true.  We  were  made  for  eternity, 
and  the  great  ambitions  which  throb  in  our  souls 
cannot  be  stilled  by  death.  The  funeral  proces- 
sion leaves  us  at  the  mouth  of  the  harbor,  and 
when  our  friends  return  to  their  homes  we  spread 
invisible  canvas  and  sail  on  and  on  toward  the 
throne  of  God. 


THE    MYSTERY    OF    CHRISTMAS. 

"  We  have  seen   His  star  in  the  east,  and  are  come  to  worship 
Ilini.'' — Matt.  ii.  2. 

A  SCIENTIFIC  man  will  listen  respectfully  to  a 
new  theory,  because  there  are  many  unsolved 
problems  in  the  universe.  But  he  holds  the  the- 
ory in  abeyance  until  he  sees  how  it  works.  If 
it  settles  a  few  vexed  questions  he  will  say  it  is 
Hkely  to  be  a  true  theory ;  if  it  settles  a  large  pro- 
portion of  these  questions  he  will  be  inclined  to 
adopt  it ;  if  it  satisfactorily  disposes  of  all  the  per- 
plexities which  he  has  heretofore  encountered  he 
will  whistle  his  old  theory  down  the  wind  and  ac- 
cept the  new  one  without  hesitation. 

His  rule  is  that  what  produces  the  best  results 
must  needs  be  true,  and  when  a  new  theory  has 
been  successfully  put  to  that  practical  test  he  has 
no  prejudice  against  an  acknowledgment  of  its 
claims. 

Let  us  give  an  illustration  which  is  furnished 
35 


36  HERALD    SERMONS. 

by  astronomy.  Up  to  the  beginning  of  the  seven- 
teenth century  the  planetary  orbits  were  supposed 
to  be  circles — that  is  to  say,  the  path  around  the 
sun  in  which  all  the  members  of  our  solar  system 
moved,  from  Mercury  to  Neptune,  was  thought  to 
be  circular.  There  were  some  difficulties,  how- 
ever, which  the  circle  failed  to  solve,  and  these 
increased  until  astronomers  were  in  despair. 

When  Kepler  came  he  declared  that  the  orbits 
were  not  circles  but  ellipses.  Perhaps  no  propo- 
sition ever  created  more  astonishment.  It  was 
daring  to  the  edge  of  rashness,  and  for  some  time 
was  held  at  arm's-length.  Later  on,  though,  it 
was  discovered  that  Kepler's  theory  disposed  of 
all  the  difficulties  which  had  attended  the  notion 
of  circular  orbits.  Experiments  were  made  with 
it  by  the  score,  but  it  never  failed  to  vindicate 
itself.  It  worked,  it  produced  results,  and  from 
that  hour  to  this  it  has  never  been  blurred  by  a 
doubt. 

The  rule  is  a  good  one  to  apply  to  society,  to 
civilization,  and  to  religion,  as  well  as  to  astrono- 
my. When  we  hear  of  Christianity  as  a  new 
moral  and  spiritual  theory  its  beauty  and  comeli- 
ness   attract    the   intellect    and   move   the   heart. 


THE    MYSTERY    OF    CHRISTMAS.  37 

But  we  cannot  fairly  judge  either  of  its  worth  or  its 
truth  until  we  find  out  what  kind  of  a  community, 
what  kind  of  men  and  women,  it  can  make. 

Mere  arguments  are  seldom  conclusive,  for  in  a 
debate  the  brighter  or  more  strategic  mind  takes 
the  lead ;  but  when  instead  of  arguments  you  have 
facts,  and  can  say  to  the  world,  "  Christianity  has 
done  this  or  that ;  it  has  caused  the  people  to  cre- 
ate these  or  those  institutions,  political  or  charita- 
ble," then  you  demonstrate  its  worth  or  its  worth- 
lessness.  If  it  can  do  the  best  work  then  it  proves 
itself  true  ;  but  if  it  fails  to  do  this  we  are  like  the 
astronomers  in  the  time  of  Copernicus,  who  were 
not  satisfied  with  the  planetary  circle  and  waited 
patiently  for  some  new  teacher,  Kepler  and  his 
ellipse. 

If  we  contrast  Christianity  with  Mohammedan- 
ism or  Brahmanism,  regarding  them  all  as  theories 
of  life,  the  weight  of  argument  would  be  in  favor 
of  Christianity,  for  taken  as  a  whole  Christ's  teach- 
ings are  peculiarly  unworldly  and  uplifting.  But 
when  we  place  modern  Europe  by  the  side  of 
Arabia  or  India,  regarding  them  as  elements  of 
human  progress,  as  exponents  of  the  best  that  can 
be  done  by  three  con.spicuous  forms  of  religion, 


38  HERALD    SERMONS. 

argument  becomes  dumb  and  the  matter  is  de- 
cided by  results. 

In  such  a  competition  Christianity  has  nothing 
to  fear.  Whether  it  be  considered  as  human  or 
divine  is  just  now  a  matter  of  secondary  impor- 
tance. We  look  simply  at  the  prerogatives  which 
men  enjoy  under  it ;  at  the  kind  of  ambition  which 
spurs  men  to  action ;  at  the  moral  tone  of  society 
at  large ;  at  the  institutions  which  are  the  logical 
consequence  of  belief  in  Christ ;  at  the  literature 
in  which  the  people  delight ;  and  at  the  sym- 
pathy for  those  who  are  unfortunate  which  pre- 
vails. 

Brush  your  theological  creeds  aside  and  look  at 
Christianity  as  a  dynamic  force ;  measure  its  in- 
fluence in  the  career  of  any  one  who  has  been 
consecrated  by  its  spirit ;  note  its  encouragement 
of  public  and  private  virtue,  its  insistence  on  a 
high  standard  of  honor,  its  injunction  to  provide 
for  the  helpless  and  care  for  the  needy,  its  promise 
or  pledge  that  when  we  leave  the  body  we  shall 
take  up  our  residence  in  "  a  house  not  made  with 
hands."  Then  compare  these  peculiarities  with 
the  general  teaching  of  any  other  religious  system 
on  the  planet,  and  you  will  be  compelled  to  admit 


THE    MYSTERY    OF    CHRISTMAS.  39 

that  in  the  production  of  a  noble  hfe  Christianity 
leads  all  the  rest. 

It  is  not  strange,  therefore,  that  this  higher 
thought  was  ushered  in  by  an  overture  in  which 
angels  predicted  peace  on  earth  and  good- will  to 
men.  Nor  need  we  wonder  if  He  who  bore  the 
sacred  message  from  heaven  healed  the  sick  or 
raised  the  dead  by  a  word  of  command.  The 
Person  who  could  project  Himself  into  the  life  of 
eighteen  centuries  and  give  shape  to  more  than 
fifty  generations  would  find  it  an  easy  task  to 
master  the  mysteries  of  disease  and  death. 

We  do  well,  therefore,  to  set  apart  one  day  in 
the  year,  that  we  may  celebrate  with  songs  of 
praise  and  family  reunions  the  advent  of  One  who 
brought  such  glad  tidings  of  great  joy. 


EASTER    MORNING. 

"  And  that  he  was  buried,  and  that  he  rose  again  the  third  day." 
— I  Cor,  XV.  4. 

There  is  no  single  incident  in  the  history  of 
the  human  race  which  sends  the  blood  in  such 
rushing  torrents  through  our  veins  as  this  one 
does.  If  it  had  not  occurred  Christianity  would 
long  ago  have  been  numbered  among  the  many 
reforms  which  have  lived  their  little  day  and  then 
died.  The  Master  would  have  taken  His  place  in 
the  group  of  great  souls  who,  like  flashes  of  light- 
ning, have  illuminated  our  human  life  for  an  in- 
stant and  then  left  us  to  grope  in  the  old  uncertain 
way. 

That  incident  has  changed  our  entire  outlook ; 
taught  us  that  the  horizon  line  is  not  the  Hmit  of 
our  journey,  and  that  there  are  other  horizons 
when  this  one  has  been  reached.  It  has  given 
such  buoyancy  to  our  thoughts  that  they  are  no 

40 


EASTER    MORNING.  4I 

longer  satisfied  with  earth,  but  take  an  eagle's 
flight  toward  heaven.  It  has  furnished  us  with  a 
series  of  impelling  motives  which  make  it  almost 
easy  to  bear  the  ills  which  lie  in  ambush,  since  we 
are  making  ready,  not  to  say  **  Good-night,"  and 
then  fall  into  sleep,  but  to  say  **  Good-morning," 
when  another  dawn  shall  gild  the  hilltops  beyond 
the  cemetery. 

If  the  Roman  soldiers  had  leaned  against  the 
door  of  that  tomb  so  heavily  that  the  angels  could 
not  have  opened  it  the  words  of  Christ  might  have 
been  gathered  by  admiring  scholarship  and  pub- 
lished as  a  new  philosophy,  but  they  would  never 
have  taken  the  shape  of  a  new  religion.  The 
Preacher  in  homespun  who  was  followed  by  mul- 
titudes about  the  shores  of  Galilee  and  hated  by 
the  self-seekers  of  Jerusalem  might  have  left  the 
impress  of  His  personality  on  His  generation,  but 
He  would  not  have  become  the  founder  of  a  king- 
dom which  has  outlived  the  embattled  turmoil  of 
twenty  centuries. 

Others  have  been  bravely  defiant  of  circum- 
stance and  wrung  a  hard-earned  victory  from  fate, 
but  to  "  the  last  enemy  "  they  have  surrendered 
without  conditions,  deeming   death  too  strong   a 


42  HERALD    SERMONS. 

foe  for  successful  attack.  But  Christ  disdained 
the  lesser  conflict,  and  assured  His  disciples  that 
he  who  conquers  death  will  by  that  act  conquer 
life  also.  While  these  words  were  still  ringing  in 
the  ears  of  the  haughty  officials  of  the  temple  and 
of  the  w^ondering  and  astounded  peasantry,  He  dis- 
appeared in  the  darkness,  and  on  the  third  day 
came  forth,  bringing  both  life  and  immortality  into 
the  light. 

This  is  why  we  gather  flowers  to-day  and  dec- 
orate our  homes  and  our  churches.  This  is  why 
the  organ  sends  forth  its  peals  upon  the  vibrating 
air,  and  why  the  people  in  countless  throngs  crowd 
their  several  places  of  worship.  The  cry  heard 
everywhere  is,  "The  Lord  is  risen!"  and  the  re- 
sponse comes  back  from  all  quarters  of  the  globe, 
**  He  is  risen  indeed!" 

Have  you  watched  by  the  bedside  of  a  father 
whose  increasing  feebleness  gave  you  a  sharper 
pang  day  by  day  ?  With  slippered  feet  have  you 
ministered  to  his  comfort,  dreading  the  hour  when 
*'  the  silver  cord  shall  be  loosed  "  and  "  the  golden 
bowl  be  broken  "  ?  Have  you  felt  that  when  this 
flickering  flame   shall  be  extinguished  a  part   of 


EASTER    MORNING.  43 

your  own  life  will  go  out  with  it  and  that  your  lips 
will  sing  no  more  songs?  Would  you  make  any 
sacrifice  if  you  could  bring  back  the  old  light  into 
those  eyes,  roll  the  }'ears  away,  and  fill  the  cheeks 
with  ruddy  health  once  more?  And  do  you  trem- 
ble when  you  think  of  the  parting  which  is  so  near 
at  hand? 

Listen,  then,  for  through  the  ages  comes  a  voice 
saying,  "  I  am  the  resurrection."  It  does  not  fal- 
ter or  waver,  but  is  clear  and  strong.  If  that  voice 
is  true  you  may  even  rejoice  at  separation,  for  the 
doors  of  another  home  are  swinging  wide,  and  dear 
ones,  long  since  departed,  stand  at  the  threshold 
to  welcome  the  new-comer.  He  who  goes  on  this 
journey  will  add  one  more  to  the  number  who  in 
good  time  will  await  your  coming  with  the  same 
warm  welcome. 

Or  perhaps  a  child  has  left  your  fireside — a 
youth  with  bright  hopes  and  fair  prospects,  upon 
whose  strong  arm  you  hoped  to  lean  when  the 
twilight  of  your  day  shall  predict  approaching 
night.  No  affliction  is  harder  to  bear  than  that, 
for  the  young  seem  to  have  a  right  to  many  years. 
When  they  are  suddenly  summoned  we  are  half 


44  HERALD    SERMONS. 

convinced  that  a  kind  of  wrong  has  been  com- 
mitted. The  heart  rebels,  and  it  is  next  to  impos- 
sible to  submit  with  resignation. 

But  if  truth  be  told  no  one  has  any  claim.  God's 
providence  takes  no  note  of  years.  The  rose  may 
demand  to  live  as  long  as  the  oak ;  but  it  is  neither 
for  oak  nor  rose  to  protest,  for  what  is  best  is  best, 
and  if  we  differ  in  judgment  from  the  Almighty 
and  plead  to  have  our  way  the  answered  prayer 
might  work  us  greater  harm  than  the  affliction  we 
deplore.  God's  will  is  the  only  will,  and  behind 
that  will  is  a  beneficent  purpose.  We  may  not 
understand  the  purpose,  but  faith  commands  us  to 
accept  the  will  in  place  of  our  own.  We  are  not 
God,  and  do  not  know  as  He  knows,  but  we  are 
His  children  and  can  accept  the  decrees  of  His 
wisdom. 

So  stands  the  case.  Troubles  are  many  and 
sorrows  are  burdensome.  Life  is  a  prolonged 
struggle,  and  he  who  would  find  content  must  seek 
for  it  in  a  firm  faith  that  God  makes  no  mistakes. 

Above  these  troubles,  sorrows,  bereavements 
which  fill  the  world  with  murmurings  and  regrets 
is  the  still  small  voice  of  Him  who  said,  "  I  go  to 
prepare  a  place  for  you." 


EASTER    MORNING.  45 

To-day  may  be  tempestuous,  but  to-morrow 
will  be  calm  and  bright.  To-day  we  visit  our 
graves,  but  to-morrow  we  shall  go  to  heaven  and 
there  discover  our  dear  ones.  We  can  be  quiet, 
for  though  life  is  hard  the  reunion  will  give  us  back 
all  whom  we  have  lost. 


A    HAPPY    NEW-YEAR. 

"  But  this  I  say,  brethren,  the  time  is  short." — I  Cor.  vii.  29. 

All  years  are  not  alike  in  value  to  the  race  or 
the  individual ;  neither  are  all  days.  There  are 
black  days  and  white  days ;  weeks  that  are  bur- 
densome and  weeks  that  are  like  a  merry  chime  of 
bells  ;  months  that  rumble  with  the  thunder  of  de- 
feat and  months  that  resound  with  the  shouts  of 
victory. 

There  is  no  monotony  in  time.  It  varies  as 
does  the  landscape.  In  one  period  it  is  as  level  as 
a  Western  prairie,  with  no  special  experiences  to 
mark  its  passage ;  in  another  changes  come  and 
events  occur  which  make  the  weeks  resemble  the 
Alleghanies — mountain-heights  gathered  together 
like  a  great  company  of  giants  whose  shining  hel- 
mets are  visible  though  you  have  traveled  far  away 
and  stand  on  your  horizon  line  ;  in  still  another 
some  day  or  week  with  its  wondrous  happenings 
rises  from  the  plain   of  memory  like  a  veritable 

46 


A    IIAPPV    NKW-YEAR.  47 

Mont  Blanc,  and  though  seventy  years  be  counted 
in  your  calendar  you  still  see  its  summit  and  say, 
"That  was  the  hour  when  my  new  life  began." 
It  may  mark  a  great  catastrophe  or  an  unspeakable 
happiness,  but  there  it  stands,  in  gloom  or  gran- 
deur, and  when  you  are  about  to  close  your  eyes 
in  the  last  sleep  they  will  rest  on  that  event  which 
made  you  other  than  you  were. 

In  our  boyhood  time  walks,  in  middle  life  it  am- 
bles, and  in  old  age  it  pants  in  breathless  haste  to 
reach  the  goal  and  have  done  with  us.  A  day  is 
a  week  to  the  child,  and  a  week  is  but  a  day  to 
the  aged.  In  our  halcyon  youth,  when  we  live  on 
dreams,  we  wish  the  time  away,  and,  like  an  im- 
petuous rider,  spur  the  days  to  greater  speed.  We 
have  such  treasure  of  them  that  we  are  spendthrift 
and  long  to  reach  the  future,  which  beckons  us  to 
high  achievement.  But  at  the  other  end  of  life, 
when  the  number  of  weeks  in  our  coffers  runs  low, 
and  to  replenish  is  impossible,  we  use  them  with 
increasing  economy,  if  not  with  parsimony.  We 
begrudge  the  expenditure  of  time,  for  there  is 
much  to  be  done  and  only  a  few  enfeebled  years 
left  in  which  to  do  it. 

And  yet  what  matters  it  after  all  ?     We  go,  but 


48  HERALD    SERMONS. 

the  world  remains.  We  are  not  necessary,  for  no 
one  is  indispensable  to  progress.  If  we  are  missed 
for  a  while  we  are  greatly  privileged.  Though  we 
have  stood  at  the  helm  and  guided  the  ship  of  state 
through  many  a  storm,  another  and  perhaps  a  stur- 
dier hand  will  take  the  wheel  when  death  bids  us 
retire.  Great  men  are  never  wanting,  and  however 
proud  the  position  we  hold  there  is  some  one  wait- 
ing— it  may  be  without  being  conscious  that  he  is 
the  coming  hero,  for  the  opportunity  has  not  yet 
come  to  him — there  is  always  some  one  waiting  to 
fill  it  with  a  larger  plan  or  wiser  counsel. 

Nature  disdains  the  assertion  that  her  resources 
are  exhausted.  She  can  make  a  giant  at  a  mo- 
ment's notice  whenever  the  emergency  requires. 
There  are  Bismarcks  and  Gladstones  and  Lincolns 
and  Grants  in  every  nook  and  corner  of  the  uni- 
verse. When  the  convulsion  comes  the  leader 
comes  with  it.  And  no  matter  how  great  the  con- 
vulsion, some  leader  is  found  who  can  master  it. 

What  shall  we  say,  then,  of  lesser  folk  ?  They 
are  pawns  on  the  chess-board,  who  serve  a  pur- 
pose at  the  beginning  of  the  game,  but  after  a  little 
are  removed,  piled  together  in  a  huddled  heap,  and 
are  never  thought  of  again  until  a  new  game  is  to 


A    HAPPY    NEW-YEAR.  49 

be  played.  The  pawns  are  nothing,  but  the  game 
goes  on  to  victory  or  defeat.  Most  of  us  are 
pawns.  There  are  rooks  and  bishops  and  knights 
and  queens,  the  loss  of  which,  in  that  particular 
game,  is  to  be  deplored  ;  but  we  are  pawns,  and 
whether  we  are  on  the  board,  a  part  of  the  oppos- 
ing forces,  or  on -the  table,  our  mission  ended,  is 
matter  of  little  consequence.  We  are  thrust  aside, 
and  the  players  play  on  without  heeding  our  fate. 
"  Until  a  new  game  is  to  be  played."  But  is 
there  a  new  game,  or  are  we  the  rank  and  file  of 
one  game  only  and  then  laid  aside  forever? 
Analogies  may  be  logically  dangerous,  and  yet 
we  may  venture  the  assertion  that  when  these 
present  players  grow  weary,  close  the  board  for 
the  night,  throw  the  pieces  into  the  box,  and  re- 
tire for  rest  and  refreshment,  the  mission  of  pawns 
and  bishops  has  not  ceased.  The  game  has  not 
been  abolished  because  the  two  contestants  slum- 
ber. There  shall  come  others  who  like  chess  as 
well  as  they,  and  who  play  as  skilfully ;  and  when 
some  future  evening  shadows  fall  the  board  will 
be  reopened,  the  knights  and  rooks  and  pawns 
shall  take  their  places  again,  and  the  same  old 
contest  will  still  go  on.     There  is  an  infinite  differ- 


50  HERALD    SERMONS. 

ence  between  chess  and  any  particular  game  of 
chess.  The  latter  ends  when  the  clock  strikes 
twelve,  but  the  former  will  be  played  for  a  thou- 
sand years  to  come,  and  even  the  pawns  may 
proudly  say,  "  We  are  no  longer  needed  for  this 
evening's  enjoyment,  but  there  will  come  other 
evenings,  and  we  shall  be  needed  then  as  much  as 
now." 

If  that  be  so  we  may  take  heart  in  the  midst  of 
our  New-year  greetings.  The  months  may  speed 
as  they  will ;  the  days  may  come  and  go  like  light- 
ning-flashes ;  age  may  creep  on  apace,  and  youth 
hasten  to  middle  life ;  November  blasts  may  chill 
and  December  snows  cover  the  sod  like  a  shroud 
— it  matters  little.  There  will  be  other  years  in 
other  climes,  and  the  work  we  leave  unfinished 
will  be  brought  to  completion  after  the  grass  has 
grown  on  our  graves. 

So  bright  a  hope  must  give  us  good  cheer,  and 
it  throws  a  heartiness,  if,  indeed,  it  throws  also  a 
pathos,  into  the  wish  with  which  friend  meets 
friend :  **  A  happy  New-year  to  you,  here  or  else- 
where!" 


SHALL  WE  KNOW  EACH  OTHER 
THERE? 

"  But  then  shall  I  know  even  as  also  I  am  known." — i  Cor. 
xiii.  12. 

There  is  not  as  much  skepticism  in  the  world 
nowadays  as  there  was  twenty  years  ago. 

A  careful  survey  of  the  times  will  convince  you 
that  the  old  lines  of  doubt  have  been  abandoned 
and  that  men  are  thinking  affirmatively  about  the 
future  life. 

Not  that  men  are  going  back  to  church  dogmas. 
On  the  contrary,  they  are  getting  farther  from 
them,  if  possible. 

But  they  are  silently  formulating  a  religion  of 
their  own — a  peculiar  kind  of  religion,  which  the 
clergy  are  inclined  to  look  at  askance,  but  which 
contains  the  essential  principles  on  which  an  hon- 
est life  here  and  the  hope  of  a  life  hereafter  are 
securely  based. 

The  people  were  never  more  averse  to  creeds 
51 


52  HERALD    SERMONS. 

than  now.  That  is  a  rather  startling  characteristic 
of  the  age.  Thoughful  men  have  feared  that  the 
multitude,  after  slipping  the  moorings  of  Calvin- 
ism, would  drift  out  to  sea  or  on  a  lee  shore,  be- 
cause it  frequently  happens  that  when  one  gives 
up  his  old  faith  he  lives  the  rest  of  his  life  without 
any  faith  at  all. 

This  danger,  however,  has  been  safely  passed. 
The  tendency  is  toward  a  wider  and  deeper  faith 
than  we  have  ever  had.  If  the  church  would  rec- 
ognize this  fact  and  fit  itself  to  the  new  condition 
of  affairs  it  could  easily  become  the  leader  of  the 
people  in  their  explorations.  But  if  the  church 
persists  in  emphasizing  the  formulas  of  other  days, 
and  continues  to  ignore  all  sources  of  information 
except  those  to  which  it  has  been  accustomed,  the 
people  will  go  on  without  it  and  find  leaders  among 
themselves. 

In  illustration  of  this  general  statement,  and  also 
in  proof  of  it,  we  may  safely  assert  that  at  no  hour 
in  the  world's  history  has  there  been  so  much  in- 
terest in  the  subject  of  man's  immortality  as  now. 
Nor  has  there  ever  before  been  so  much  legiti- 
mate curiosit}-  as  to  the  conditions  which  will  pre- 
vail in  that  other  Hfe  to  which  we  are  hastening. 


SHALL  WE  KNOW  EACH  OTHER  THERE?  53 

Whether  this  is  the  result  of  that  odd  movement 
called  spiritualism — which  started  in  the  forties 
and  spread  like  a  prairie  fire — which  loudly  de- 
clares that  communion  between  the  two  worlds  is 
a  privilege  to  be  enjoyed  by  every  shadowed  home, 
or  whether  it  came  from  a  combination  of  other 
causes,  is  a  matter  of  inferior  consequence.  When 
the  thirsty  man  has  water  to  drink  he  simply 
drinks  it  and  is  thankful,  not  stopping  to  inquire 
from  what  mountain- range  the  river  flows  on  whose 
green  banks  he  reposes  in  peace. 

But  besides  the  bare  fact  of  continued  life  we  de- 
sire to  know  what  our  relations  to  each  other  will 
be  after  we  cross  the  golden  threshold.  Is  our  love 
a  merely  temporary  contrivance,  a  volatile  element 
which  will  evaporate  at  death,  a  bond  of  union, 
based  on  the  necessity  of  perpetuating  the  race, 
which  will  be  broken  at  the  grave?  or  is  it  the 
mutual  attraction  of  souls  which  have  luckily  found 
each  other  in  this  life,  and  which  will  continue  in 
force  in  all  other  lives  which  may  lie  ahead  of  us? 

Much  depends  on  the  answer  to  that  question. 
If  love  is  an  earthly  convenience,  and  only  that, 
then  practically  the  end  comes  when  the  curtain 
drops  on  our  little  drama — comedy  or  tragedy,  as 


54  HERALD    SERMONS. 

the  case  may  be.  But  if  the  mother's  love  or  the 
lover's  love,  being  a  love  of  souls  and  not  of 
bodies,  is  a  part  of  the  soul  itself,  then  both  we 
who  remain  a  little  longer  and  they  who  go  amid 
our  sighs  and  tears  can  wait  patiently,  as  one  waits 
in  Europe  for  the  coming  of  the  dear  one  or  waits 
in  America  for  the  return  home. 

The  problem  is  not  difficult  to  solve  if  we  face 
facts  bravely.  That  we  shall  recognize  each  other 
in  the  life  beyond  needs  no  argument.  Common 
sense  simply  says,  "  Of  course  we  shall,"  and  that 
ends  all  controversy.  That  we  shall  know  each 
other  better  than  we  do  now^  goes  without  saying. 
That  we  shall  see  through  all  disguises,  even  as  we 
shall  be  seen,  seems  to  be  very  certain.  There 
wall  be  no  deceptions,  for  soul  will  look  at  soul  and 
motives  cannot  be  concealed. 

That  this  clearer  sight  will  alter  a  great  many 
of  our  relationships  becomes  perfectly  evident,  just 
as  it  is  evident  that  if  our  hearts  were  laid  bare  in 
this  life  our  relations  to  each  other  would  be 
changed. 

If  love,  therefore — our  present  love — is  con- 
nected in  any  way  with  our  physical  passions,  or 
is  at  all  dependent  on  them,  then  death,  which  de- 


SHALL  WE  KNOW  EACH  OTHER  THERE?  55 

prives  us  of  our  bodies,  will  bring  that  love  to  an 
end.  We  may  know  each  other  there,  but  the 
peculiar  attraction  which  now  binds  us  will  cease 
to  exist.  There  will  be  no  fuel  for  its  fiame,  and 
the  flame  must  needs  die  out.  Clearly  that  kind 
of  love  is  a  merely  earthly  expedient  or  incident 
or  even  accident,  and  will  have  fulfilled  its  mission 
when  the  breath  leaves  the  body.  It  cannot  go 
hence  when  we  go,  but  must  be  left  behind  because 
there  is  no  element  of  immortality  in  it. 

But  the  other  kind  of  love,  which  rests  on  unity 
of  purpose,  on  divine  sympathy,  on  admiration  for 
qualities  of  character — the  love  w^hich  has  its  origin 
in  what  the  loved  one  is,  not  in  what  he  has — that 
is  as  much  a  part  of  the  soul  as  ambition  is,  or 
courage,  and  can  no  more  die  than  the  soul  itself 
can  die.  Those  who  love  each  other  in  an  earthly 
way  may  soon  become  strangers  over  yonder;  but 
they  who  love  in  this  higher  way  will  come  closer 
together  when  they  reach  the  shore  beyond  the 
shadow. 

This,  then,  is  the  truth — that  we  shall  know  each 
other  without  a  doubt ;  that  we  shall  love  each 
other  throughout  eternity,  provided  our  love  is 
that  of  souls  rather  than  of  bodies. 


A   WASTED    LIFE. 

"  And  there  wasted  his  substance  with  riotous  living." — Luke 
XV.  13. 

It  is  appalling  to  think  of  the  vast  amount  of 
unused  and  misused  energy  there  is  in  the  world. 

If  all  men  could  be  persuaded  to  do  their  best, 
and  do  it  with  might  and  main,  we  should  soon 
have  a  race  of  gods  on  the  earth. 

There  is  no  more  painful  contrast  in  human  life 
than  that  between  what  we  are  capable  of  doing 
and  what  we  really  accomplish. 

Perhaps  there  is  not  a  single  instance  in  history 
of  a  man  who  worked  up  to  his  utmost  mental  or 
spiritual  capacity. 

The  noblest  man  that  lives  can  do  no  more  than 
furnish  a  suggestion  of  the  soul's  aspiring  possibil- 
ities before  he  is  called  hence  by  the  tolling  of 
funeral  bells.  He  leaves  his  task  only  half  done, 
his  song  only  half  sung,  when  the  reverend  clergy 
pronounce  the  solemn  words,  **  Dust  to  dust,  ashes 
to  ashes." 

56 


A   WASTED    LIFE.  57 

In  this  we  are  notably  different  from  other 
created  things.  The  beasts  of  the  field,  the  birds 
of  the  air,  the  trees  of  the  forest,  accomplish  their 
perfect  work,  and  could  do  no  more  if  they  had 
added  centuries  in  which  to  develop.  The  thrush 
would  still  sing  his  plaintive  notes,  the  eagle  would 
soar  to  no  higher  altitude,  the  maple  and  birch 
would  have  no  brighter  colors  after  the  autumnal 
frost. 

Man  alone  is  endowed  with  the  tremendous 
prerogatives  of  imperfection.  He  alone  can  say 
at  death,  "  My  horizon  line  is  as  far  away  as  ever." 

And  beneath  this  consciousness  of  neglected 
duties  which  brings  the  red  blood  to  his  cheeks  is 
the  curious  conviction  that  even  if  he  had  worked 
with  entire  faithfulness,  and  lost  neither  time  nor 
opportunity,  his  years  are  still  too  few  and  his  lim- 
itations too  many  to  allow  him  to  achieve  the  best 
of  which  he  is  capable. 

He  can  do  more  if  another  life  and  a  better  en- 
vironment are  furnished.  He  has  a  right  to  think 
it  strange,  therefore,  that  the  Being  who  made  him 
to  become  great  should  call  him  away  from  his 
task  before  he  can  possibly  achieve  greatness  ;  that 
He  who  filled  him  with  magnificent  abilities  should 


58  HERALD    SERMONS. 

close  his  eyes  in  an  eternal  sleep  just  as  he  begins 
to  appreciate  them.  Immortality  is  an  absolute 
necessity,  unless  we  are  willing  to  admit  that  the 
creation  of  man  is  an  unaccountable  blunder.  As 
soon  make  a  violin  and  then  destroy  it  when  only 
a  few  of  the  simplest  airs  have  been  played. 

But  apart  from  all  this  is  the  fact  that  there  are 
men  who  run  riot  with  themselves,  and  at  death 
have  nothing  to  carry  to  heaven  except  an  armful 
of  regrets.  Their  lives  are  like  a  prairie  fire,  which 
consumes  everything  as  it  goes  and  leaves  nothing 
behind  but  blackened  ashes.  In  the  resurrection 
they  will  stand  before  the  bar  of  judgment  as  spir- 
itual ruins,  and  must  needs  unlearn  nearly  all  they 
ever  learned  in  this  life  before  they  can  make  any 
progress.  They  have  found  their  happiness  in 
physical  indulgence,  and  will  feel  curiously  out  of 
place  when  they  step  out  of  their  bodies  and  can 
have  no  more  pleasures  of  the  grosser  sort. 

The  disadvantage  with  which  they  will  begin 
the  other  life  is  too  great  for  even  the  imagination 
to  contemplate.  Happiness  will  certainly  be  out 
of  the  question  until  by  slow  degrees  and  painful 
experience  they  effect  a  radical  change  in  them- 
selves.    The  hell  of  theology  has  no  pangs  which 


A    WASTED    LIFE.  59 

will  compare  with  the  remorse  they  must  suffer 
when  they  see  things  in  their  right  light  and  come 
to  a  full  consciousness  that  they  have  deliberately 
unfitted  themselves  for  their  environment.  The 
fiery  lake  would  be  almost  a  relief,  for  God  has 
decreed  no  punishment  so  great  as  that  which  en- 
compasses a  soul  that  has  lived  for  the  body  only 
and  does  not  know  how  to  live  without  it. 

For  instance,  what  will  happen  to  the  poor 
creature  who  has  lived  a  besotted  life,  or  the  man 
whose  years  have  been  a  continuous  fraud  on  him- 
self ?  What  profounder  depths  of  personal  wretch- 
edness can  one  conceive  of  than  he  is  driven  into 
when  he  looks  back  on  what  he  has  been,  and  then 
gets  a  glimpse  of  what  he  might  have  been  ?  Put 
such  a  man  into  a  position  in  which  all  his  faculties 
will  be  thoroughly  awakened,  in  which  he  will  see 
himself  as  he  is,  and  be  forced  to  view  the  falling 
tears  of  a  heart-broken  wife,  the  fateful  and  ruin- 
ous tendencies  he  transmitted  to  his  children,  which 
have  forced  them  into  lives  equally  shameful  as  his 
own.  What  must  be  his  condition  of  mind  ?  The 
flaming  tempests  of  the  bottomless  pit  seem,  by 
way  of  contrast,  like  an  asylum  built  by  pity.  He 
must   undo   the   wrongs   he   has   committed,    and 


60  HERALD    SERMONS. 

endure  agony  until  those  wrongs  have  been 
righted. 

It  is  a  serious  thing  to  carry  a  wasted  Hfe  with 
all  its  consequences  into  the  other  world. 

What  precious  emphasis  is  given  by  these  facts 
to  the  divine  mission  and  the  encouraging  doctrines 
of  the  New  Testament!  How  gently  and  with 
what  solemn  persuasiveness  Jesus  dealt  with  the 
fallen !  He  saw  in  the  outcast  a  brother  or  a  sis- 
ter, and  though  He  scornfully  bade  those  who  were 
without  sin  to  cast  the  first  stone,  there  must  have 
been  a  melting  sorrow  in  His  tone  when  He  whis- 
pered to  the  offender,  "  Go,  and  sin  no  more." 

He  never  condoned  crime,  but  was  always  sorry 
for  the  criminal.  The  poor  creature  had  already 
lost  so  much  in  the  way  of  character  and  happiness 
that  it  was  unnecessary  to  add  to  his  burden  the 
so-called  anger  of  God.  No  one  knows  better 
than  the  remorseful  sinner  himself  that  God's  grief 
is  far  more  painful  to  contemplate  than  His  aveng- 
ing wrath,  and  if  the  church  would  tell  us  less  about 
the  unsheathed  sword  and  more  about  the  relent- 
less regrets  which  every  disembodied  soul  must 
needs  endure  in  consequence  of  its  earthly  short- 
comings and  misdeeds,  it  would  have  a  larger,  a 


A    WASTED    LIFE.  6 1 

more  potential,  and  a  more  wholesome  influence 
on  the  world. 

If  any  one  truth  taught  by  the  Master  has  con- 
spicuous prominence,  it  is  the  truth  of  God's  love 
for  us  all,  and  His  sympathetic  pity  for  the  sinner 
who  has  gone  astray.  The  text  is  from  a  parable 
which  represents  the  joy  of  the  angels  when  the 
misguided  boy  sees  the  folly  of  wasting  his  sub- 
stance with  riotous  living,  and  returns  to  the 
father's  house  in  the  sad  consciousness  that  he  is 
no  longer  worthy  to  be  called  a  son ;  and  there  is 
a  deeper  warning  in  that  pathetic  story,  more  that 
appeals  to  the  nobler  elements  of  human  nature, 
than  can  be  found  in  all  the  imprecatory  theology 
that  was  ever  formulated. 


THE    MINISTRY    OF    ANGELS. 

"  For  he  shall  give  his  angels  charge  over  thee,  to  keep  thee  in 
all  thy  ways." — Ps.  xci.  ii. 

"  And,  behold,  angels  came  and  ministered  unto  Him." — Matt, 
iv.  II. 

"  Thinkest  thou  that  I  cannot  now  pray  to  My  Feather,  and  He 
shall  presently  give  Me  more  than  twelve  legions  of  angels  ?  " — 
Matt.  xxvi.  53. 

The  ministry  of  unseen  beings  is  one  of  the 
most  important  doctrines  of  the  Christian  church ; 
it  is  also  one  of  the  most  neglected. 

A  great  many,  even  among  the  thoughtful,  will 
be  surprised  at  the  statement  that  the  intervention 
of  angels  in  human  affairs  is  a  very  conspicuous 
element  in  the  Sacred  Books  and  that  hardly  a  great 
event  is  recorded  there  in.  which  they  have  not 
been  prominent  actors. 

There  is  even  a  widely  prevalent  prejudice 
against  the  doctrine,  especially  among  Protestants, 
which  is  perhaps  the  result  of  a  reaction  from  those 
medieval  days  when  the  providence  of  God  was 
almost  lost  sight  of  in  the  activities  of  His  agents. 

62 


THE    MINISTRY    OF    ANCiELS.  63 

It  is  not  difficult  for  us  to  believe  that  the  Father 
is  within  reach  of  our  prayers,  and  that  Christ  can 
keep  His  promise  to  come  and  take  up  His  abode 
with  us  in  seasons  of  stress  and  dismay  ;  but  for 
some  reason  we  falter  in  our  faith  that  round  about 
us  are  multitudes  of  angels,  who  are  not  only  able 
but  ready  to  do  us  a  great  service ;  are  watchful 
of  our  interests  and  eager  to  impress  our  minds 
with  what  it  is  right  and  best  to  do. 

And  yet  that  is  a  natural  if  not  a  necessary  in- 
ference from  the  general  tenor  of  the  Bible.  If  it 
is  logical  to  assert  that  God  has  not  withdrawn  into 
the  eternal  solitudes,  but  is  as  close  to-day  as  in 
the  olden  time  when  His  voice  of  warning  or  com- 
mand rang  through  the  history  of  the  Jews,  it  is 
equally  logical  and  not  more  daring  to  declare  that 
His  angels  are  our  guardians  as  they  were  the 
guardians  of  our  ancestors.  No  change  has  taken 
place  either  in  our  human  needs  or  in  His  methods. 
What  infinite  wisdom  and  goodness  decreed  for 
our  fathers  holds  good  for  us.  If  messengers  from 
on  high  could  visit  Abraham  and  make  their  pres- 
ence known  to  Elisha  there  is  no  reason  to  sup- 
pose that  they  are  unwilling  to  come  to  our  assis- 
tance ;  and  if  they  offered  their  ministrations  to  our 


64  HERALD    SERMONS. 

Lord,  why  may  they  not  be  expected  to  do  us  a 
like  service,  since  we  have  been  made  heirs  of  the 
Lord's  privileges? 

A  whole  sect  of  curious  folk  has  arisen  within 
the  last  fifty  years  whose  only  ground  for  exis- 
tence is  the  possibility  of  some  kind  of  communica- 
tion between  the  earth  and  the  upper  air.  They 
call  themselves  by  the  unique  name  of  spiritualists, 
for  the  simple  reason  that  they  believe  in  the 
continued  love  and  helpfulness  of  the  departed. 
They  have  revived  the  ancient  faith,  and  boldly 
assert  what  every  personage  of  the  New  and  every 
prophet  of  the  Old  Testament  would  assert,  that 
heaven  is  within  speaking-distance  and  that  the 
conscious  companionship  of  angels  is  one  of  the 
inalienable  rights  of  aspiring  souls.  If  Christians 
had  thoroughly  believed  the  Bible  and  accepted 
its  revelations  in  this  regard  spirituaHsm  would 
never  have  been  born.  There  would  have  been 
no  more  demand  for  it  than  for  a  class  of  scien- 
tists who  should  announce  their  faith  in  the  law 
of  gravitation. 

This  sect  has  spread  with  wonderful  rapidity. 
Its  organized  membership  makes  a  remarkable 
showing  so  far  as  numbers  and  Hterature  and  influ- 


THE    MINISTRY    OF    ANGELS.  65 

ence  are  concerned,  and  its  unorganized  mem- 
bership is  to  be  found  in  ever}'  church  of  every 
denomination,  and  in  every  village  and  hamlet 
throughout  the  earth. 

We  may  not  agree  with  some  of  the  wild  ex- 
travagances of  this  body  of  men  and  women,  and 
may  close  our  ears  to  many  of  the  incredible  ex- 
periences which  they  relate ;  but  the  fact  remains 
that  they  are  a  necessary  element  of  our  present 
religious  life,  because  they  satisfy  a  spiritual  long- 
ing which  the  church  has  either  ignored  or  refused 
to  foster.  If  they  were  not  wanted  they  would 
not  remain;  if  their  doctrines  were  unwelcome  or 
unreasonable  they  would  diminish  in  numbers  and 
after  a  little  fall  to  pieces. 

But  the  truth  is  that  they  have  appropriated  one 
of  the  most  excellent  and  needful  truths,  which, 
for  some  reason  or  other,  our  pulpits  have  thrown 
aside,  and  on  that  one  truth  have  built  an  enormous 
structure  under  whose  roof  thousands  and  tens  of 
thousands  find  shelter  from  the  storms  of  life.  The 
great  mass  of  people  in  this  hard  workaday  world 
need  all  the  comfort  and  encouragement  which 
religion  can  afford.  Their  burdens  are  heavy,  and 
too  often  their  eyes  are  red  with  weeping.     There 


66  HERALD    SERMONS. 

are  cares  and  anxieties  which  gall  the  shoulders, 
and  bereavements  which  break  the  heart.  Tell  it 
how  you  will,  the  story  has  a  line  of  tragedy  run- 
ning through  it,  and  one  goes  but  a  little  way  be- 
fore he  stumbles  on  a -disappointment  or  a  grave. 

In  other  w^ords,  men  and  women  must  have  help. 
If  their  only  company  is  stern  doubts,  if  they 
walk  alone,  laden  with  many  negations,  they  sing 
few  songs,  and  not  even  these  with  a  merry  voice. 
There  is  not  much  difference  between  a  doubt  and 
a  viper  if  you  must  carry  either  in  your  bosom. 

On  the  other  hand,  to  know  that  above  you  are 
multitudes  of  spirits,  some,  perhaps,  the  spirits  of 
your  dear  ones  of  long  ago ;  that  it  is  a  part  of 
God's  providence  that  they  should  accompany  you 
in  order  "  to  keep  thee  in  all  thy  ways  "  ;  that  their 
mission  is  to  lovingly  influence  you,  though  by 
subtle  means  beyond  your  ken  ;  that  they  now  and 
again  creep  so  close  to  your  consciousness  that  you 
are  almost  aware  of  their  presence  ;  and  that  at  all 
times  and  in  every  strait  they  will  serve  you — 
what  other  effect  can  such  a  truth  have  than  to 
check  your  mad  impulse,  give  you  serenity  of  mind 
amid  disturbing  experiences,  enable  you  to  bear 
inevitable  sorrow  with  resignation,  and  render  the 


THE    MINISTRY    OF    ANGELS.  6^ 

Other  life  so  real  that  you  will  sometime  say  your 
farewell  without  regret? 

That  is  the  doctrine  of  the  Bible,  and  if  you  fail 
to  heed  it  you  blindly  neglect  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant revelations  of  God. 


VIEWS    OF    DEATH. 

"  If  therefore  thou  shalt  not  watch,  I  will  come  on  thee  as  a 
thief,  and  thou  shalt  not  know  what  hour  I  will  come  upon  thee." 
— Rev.  iii.  3. 

The  death  of  President  Carnot  furnishes  us 
with  a  very  serious  topic  for  consideration  this 
morning. 

For  our  present  purpose  we  may  ignore  the  fact 
that  he  was  the  loved  and  honored  chief  of  the 
French  RepubHc,  and  that  he  was  the  worthy  rep- 
resentative of  an  ancient  family  whose  record  of 
probity  and  courage  is  unbroken.  These  serve  to 
lend  an  added  emphasis  to  the  incident,  but  the 
impressive  truth  is  that  Death  steals  upon  us  una- 
wares, with  slippered  feet,  and  that  neither  wealth 
nor  ancestry  will  stay  his  hand  for  a  single  instant. 

He  comes  to  all  alike,  and  it  makes  no  difference 
to  him  whether  the  person  for  whom  he  holds  a 
summons  Hves  in  a  palace,  amid  the  elegant  sur- 
roundings which  sometimes  make  life   the    more 

68 


VIEWS    OF   DEATH.  69 

desirable,  or  in  a  hovel,  where  the  only  guests 
are  want  and  hunger. 

Death  ne\'er  yet  took  a  bribe.  He  always 
achiev^es  his  purpose  without  hesitation.  It  mat- 
ters nothing  to  him  whether  the  body  from  which 
he  has  wrenched  a  soul  lies  in  state,  in  the  midst 
of  a  mourning  populace,  or  is  cheaply  coffined  and 
carried  to  an  obscure  corner  of  some  country 
churchyard.  He  is  an  inexorable  creature,  and 
when  he  says  "Come!"  you  instantly  lay  aside 
your  w^ork,  however  important  it  may  seem  to  be, 
whisper  a  few  hasty  farewells,  and  then  your  tear- 
ful friends  remark,  with  bated  breath,  "  He  has 
gone!" 

The  strange  part  of  it  all  is  that  you  cannot 
reckon  on  a  year  or  a  month  or  even  a  day  with 
anything  like  certainty.  You  must  be  ready  for 
this  invisible  messenger  at  all  times.  If,  therefore, 
there  is  anything  in  philosophy  or  religion  which 
will  give  you  quietude  and  serenity  of  mind  you 
must  possess  yourself  of  it  at  once  and  hold  it  for 
an  emergency.  It  is  worth  more  to  you  than 
riches,  for  riches  have  a  w^ay  of  deserting  you  in 
the  pinch  of  fate.  The  fact  that  you  are  worth 
millions  does  not  give  you  comfort  when  you  are 


70  HERALD    SERMONS. 

/;/  extremis;  neither  do  you  find  consolation  in  the 
honors  you  have  won  or  in  the  high  position  which 
you  must  vacate. 

The  Stoic  of  olden  time  ground  his  teeth  when 
Death  knocked  at  his  door.  He  met  the  conqueror 
with  grim  defiance,  and  surrendered  with  a  shrug 
of  the  shoulders.  He  summoned  whatever  indif- 
ference he  could  command,  and  died  with  a  scowl 
on  his  face.  It  was  better  so  than  to  cringe  in 
cowardly  fashion,  and  we  cannot  refrain  from  a 
certain  degree  of  admiration  for  the  man  who  be- 
lieved in  nothing  and  yet  took  whatever  came 
without  a  groan.  That  brutal  bravery  is  worthy 
of  imitation,  if  we  can  get  no  nobler  view  of  the 
subject. 

The  agnostics  of  to-day  are  the  lineal  descen- 
dants of  these  ancient  Stoics.  They  must  needs 
cling  to  life,  for  it  is  all  they  will  ever  have.  To 
give  it  up  is  the  gravest  misfortune,  but  still  a  mis- 
fortune which  must  be  met  in  a  manly  way.  The 
future  is  eternal  darkness,  for  body  and  soul  dis- 
integrate and  resolve  themselves  into  natural  forces, 
as  a  tree  does  when  it  is  riven  by  lightning,  or  as 
a  house  does  when  it  is  consumed  by  fire.  There 
is    nothing  to  look  forward   to,  and  when  Death 


VIEWS    OF    DEATH.  7 1 

comes  he  simply  takes  the  record  of  your  years 
and  throws  it  into  the  waste-basket  of  the  universe. 

The  agnostic  does  right  to  live  with  all  his  might, 
and  if  he  lives  recklessly  we  can  scarcely  blame 
him,  for  in  the  last  analysis  we  must  admit  that  if 
this  life  is  all  it  is  foolish  to  examine  too  closely 
into  the  character  of  our  pleasures.  The  fact  that 
they  are  pleasures  ought  to  satisfy  us,  and  a  short 
life  that  is  merry  is  better  than  a  long  life  that  is 
embittered.  A  few  years  more  or  less  count  for 
nothing,  and  if  we  can  enjoy  ourselves  who  cares 
what  it  may  cost  others  ?  It  is  logical  and  consis- 
tent to  get  what  we  want  without  regarding  the 
manner  of  getting  it. 

There  is  another  way  of  looking  at  the  matter, 
however.  You  may  tell  us,  if  you  please,  that 
Christianity  is  a  tissue  of  fables  and  legends ;  but 
the  reply  is  that  a  fable  which  makes  a  man  more 
manly  is  better  than  a  truth  which  makes  a  man 
cowardly.  If  the  world  is  so  constituted  that  a 
legend  or  a  falsehood,  accepted  in  good  faith,  will 
enable  us  to  endure  the  ills  of  life  with  serenity  of 
temper  and  die  with  a  smile  on  our  lips,  while  the 
truth  makes  us  cold  and  hard  and  selfish,  then  by 
all  means  let  us  abandon  the  truth  and  adopt  the 


72  HERALD    SERMONS. 

falsehood.  We  may  possibly  wonder  how  the 
universe  got  into  such  crooked  shape,  but  if  that  is 
its  shape  we  must  make  the  best  of  things  as  we 
find  them  ;  and  if  the  "  Arabian  Nights'  Tales  "  are 
practically  worth  more  than  the  propositions  of 
Euclid,  we  do  well  to  throw  Euclid  out  of  the  win- 
dow and  read  the  "  Arabian  Nights'  Tales  "  as  our 
daily  food. 

But  we  may  venture  to  declare  that  the  universe 
is  not  crooked.  The  crook  is  in  us.  We  dare  to 
assert,  also,  that  Christianity,  with  its  warning  to 
live  honestly  because  there  is  another  life  in  which 
we  must  give  an  account  of  ourselves,  contains  the 
highest  spiritual  truth  that  the  mind  of  man  ever 
contemplated.  The  kernel  of  corn  which  produces 
an  ear  of  corn  is  true  corn.  The  apple-seed  which 
produces  an  apple-tree  is  a  true  seed.  The  idea 
which  develops  all  the  noblest  qualities  of  manhood 
is  a  true  idea.  We  judge  from  results,  and  it  is 
safe  to  do  so. 

With  the  spirit  of  Christ  in  your  heart  and  the 
principles  He  announced  in  your  life  you  are  ready 
for  any  fate.  Your  days  come  and  go,  bearing  in 
their  arms  whatever  experience  God  sees  fit  to 
send,  and  when  the  last  one  has  been  counted  you 


VIEWS   OF   DEATH.  73 

lie  down,  saying,  "  It  is  not  the  end,  but  the  be- 
ginning." Death  rings  your  bell  and  you  bid  him 
welcome,  for  he  is  only  the  doorkeeper  who  ushers 
you  across  the  threshold  of  the  present  into  the 
palace  of  eternity. 


MAN'S  LITTLENESS  AND  GREATNESS. 

"What    is    man,   .   .   .   that    Thou    shouldest    set   Thine  heart 
upon  him?  " — Job  vii.  17. 

The  most  thrilling,  discouraging,  and  appalling 
thought  that  ever  walks  with  crushing  heels 
through  the  mind  of  a  studious  man  is  the  thought 
of  his  own  insignificance  in  the  universe. 

He  comes,  he  goes.  To-day  he  is  a  part  of  the 
world,  his  pulse  beating  with  healthy  life ;  to-mor- 
row he  will  not  be  here,  and  neither  eye  nor  tele- 
scope can  penetrate  the  shadows  into  which  he 
will  disappear.  The  time  allotted  to  him  is  so 
short  that  he  no  sooner  becomes  conscious  of  the 
opportunities  by  which  he  is  surrounded  and  of 
his  own  ability  to  use  them,  than  the  trumpet- 
blast  summons  him  and  he  bids  the  world  fare- 
well. 

The  earth  swings  in  its  orbit  without  him  as 
well  as  with  him,  and  is  quite  unconcerned  whether 
he  is  here  or  elsewhere  or  nowhere.     The  sun  blazes 

74 


MAN  S    LITTLENESS    AND    GREATNESS.         75 

for  him  if  he  is  present,  and  blazes  for  some  one 
else  if  he  is  absent.  The  sky  is  blue,  the  clouds 
float  overhead,  the  rivers  run,  the  ocean  roars,  the 
dawn  comes,  the  twilight  gathers,  without  any  refer- 
ence to  him  whatever.  He  may  stay  or  depart — 
it  is  matter  of  small  consequence  to  the  changing 
seasons,  which  as  willingly  revolve  over  his  grave 
as  over  his  cradle. 

If  we  compare  the  life  of  a  man  to  the  life  of 
our  solar  system,  with  an  estimated  duration  of 
twenty  million  years  since  it  broke  its  fiery  mass 
into  planets,  and  a  prophesied  duration  of  ten  mil- 
lion years  more  before  it  will  be  shattered  in  some 
celestial  catastrophe,  we  are  amazed  at  the  pin's 
point  of  space  which  we  occupy  and  the  compara- 
tively few  minutes  we  are  allowed  to  occupy  it. 
A  human  life,  we  are  told,  is  a  thread  in  the  great 
fabric,  but  a  thousand  such  threads  may  be  wafted 
from  the  loom  of  God  without  injury  to  the  fabric 
itself.  If  ours  is  one  of  those  threads  we  must 
needs  walk  in  the  valley  of  humiliation,  for  appar- 
ently we  count  for  nothing  or  something  less  than 
nothing. 

And  yet  there  is  another  side  to  the  picture. 
This  mysterious  atom  called  man,  so  microscopic 


76  HERALD    SERMONS. 

in  proportions,  is  the  greatest  marvel  and  puzzle 
of  the  age.  Science  tells  us  that  he  is  the  last  and 
best  product  of  natural  law.  Religion  adds  that 
since  he  cannot  accomplish  his  mission  here,  but 
always  leaves  his  task  unfinished,  the  law  which 
produced  him  must  provide  a  place  where  his  mis- 
sion can  be  completed.  Else  the  universe  has  a 
seam  of  lead  in  its  bulk  of  gold  ;  else  the  plan  which 
prevails  everywhere  has  been  invaded  by  unwis- 
dom;  else  a  cruel  injustice  is  done  in  that  we  are 
created  to  perform  a  given  work  and  then  robbed 
of  the  opportunity  to  finish  it. 

Every  arrangement  has  been  made  for  our 
continuous  development,  and  every  experience,  if 
rightly  used,  will  contribute  to  our  education. 
Nothing  can  happen,  from  the  most  volatile  joy  to 
the  profoundest  grief,  which  a  man  may  not  appro- 
priate to  his  advantage.  His  seventy  years  are 
God's  University,  in  which  toil  and  pain,  laughter 
and  tears,  success  and  defeat,  poverty  and  wealth, 
are  the  text-books  which  he  cannot  diligently  study 
without  exceeding  profit. 

Life  is  given  that  we  may  learn  how  to  live. 
Adversities  accost  us  as  knights  of  old  rode  against 
each  other  in  the  tournament,  and  we  are  either 


MAN  S    LITTLENESS    AND    GREATNESS.         ^'] 

unhorsed  because  we  have  not  steeled  our  muscles 
to  meet  the  foe,  or  are  victors  because  we  can  trust 
our  swords  and  our  good  right  arms.  We  can  grow 
so  strong  and  bold,  if  we  have  been  rightly  trained, 
that  no  calamity  can  bear  us  down ;  and  he  alone 
has  reached  the  highest  type  of  manhood  w^ho  can 
force  the  loss  of  fortune  or  a  great  bereavement  to 
add  to  the  beauty,  the  serenity,  and  the  symmetry 
of  his  character. 

Do  we  graduate  from  this  God's  University  to 
make  no  use  of  what  we  have  learned  ?  Do  we 
go  through  a  long  course  of  preparation  for  some- 
thing only  to  be  told  that  there  is  nothing  to  do? 
Do  we  painfully  and  wearily  and  with  great  la- 
bor and  sacrifice  get  ready  only  to  discover  that 
there  is  nothing  to  get  ready  for?  Then  is  our 
period  of  suffering  a  delusion,  a  hallucination,  and 
we  have  developed  all  the  finer  qualities  of  our 
characters  for  no  purpose  whatever.  We  have  not 
been  permitted  to  enjoy  this  life,  because  we  have 
been  sternly  at  work  in  the  struggle  to  make 
everything  that  has  happened  fit  us  for  a  life  which 
our  own  interior  natures  have  led  us  to  expect  and 
anticipate.  What  a  strange  disappointment,  then, 
what  a  useless  and  stunning  disappointment,  to  be 


78  HERALD    SERMONS. 

informed  that  all  our  discipline  and  labor  have  been 
for  naught! 

On  the  other  hand,  what  a  zest,  what  martyr- 
like enthusiasm  we  get  from  the  promise  that  every 
hour  of  wretchedness  and  misery,  every  embattled 
year,  every  victorious  contest  with  passion,  every 
period  of  quiet  endurance  and  calm  resignation  is 
a  stepping-stone  in  that  spiral  staircase  that  leads 
to  the  realms  of  the  invisible,  that  upper  world 
into  which  we  are  ushered  when  we  graduate  with 
honor  from  this  University,  where  griefs  are  the 
professors  and  sorrows  the  tutors ! 

If  religion  were  only  a  dream  it  would  still  be  a 
dream  worth  dreaming,  for  of  such  a  dream  comes 
true  nobility,  while  those  who  dream  no  dreams, 
but  have  what  they  call  the  truth,  live  in  license 
and  die  in  weariness. 

But  if  it  is  not  a  dream,  if  it  is  a  truth,  backed 
by  the  plan  and  the  laws  of  the  universe,  if  there 
is  a  God  and  a  cross  behind  it,  then  are  we  cheered 
in  our  toil  because  the  setting  of  the  sun  on  to-day 
is  the  rising  of  the  sun  on  the  morrow,  and  the 
twiHght  of  this  life  is  the  rosy  dawn  of  the  life  that 
is  to  be. 


GOD'S    LOVE    AND    MAN'S. 

"  And  now  abiileth  faith,  hope,  love,  these  three  ;   but  the  great- 
est of  these  is  love." — i  Cor.  xiii.  13. 

A  MAX  cannot  live  long  in  such  a  world  as  this 
without  having  his  curiosity  excited.  He  sees  the 
clouds  floating  above  his  head,  and  the  stars  in  the 
illimitable  ether  beyond.  At  one  period  the  earth 
springs  into  new  life,  and  the  fields  and  orchards 
break  into  blossoms  ;  later  on  the  sun  pours  out  his 
torrid  heat,  and  blossoms  are  magically  changed 
into  fruit ;  with  the  passing  of  the  months  the  chill- 
ing frosts  stay  the  flow  of  sap  in  the  forest,  and 
Nature  acts  as  though  she  had  done  her  day's  work 
and  was  preparing  for  rest ;  then  the  snows  fall, 
like  a  warm  coverlet,  and  hills  and  valleys  sink 
into  a  profound  slumber. 

It  is  all  a  mystery,  and  man  cannot  rest  satisfied 
until  he  has  partially  explored  it.  He  gathers  a 
countless  multitude  of  facts,  arranges  them  in  logi- 
cal order,  draws  from  them  a  host  of  inferences, 

79 


8o  HERALD    SERMONS. 

the  most  conspicuous  among  them  being  that  the 
arrangement  of  the  universe  indicates  a  plan.  Ac- 
cident and  chance  are  at  once  abohshed,  and  in 
their  stead  is  estabhshed  universal  law.  Chance, 
cries  the  student,  is  to  be  found  nowhere ;  law  is 
to  be  found  everywhere. 

At  the  moment  when  accident  retired  and  law 
stepped  to  the  front  the  key  to  creation  was  found, 
and  thenceforth  science  began  to  unlock  door  after 
door  and  to  guess  the  puzzles  which  were  hidden 
behind. 

But  the  thoughtful  took  another  step  and  de- 
clared that  where  there  is  a  plan  there  must  also 
be  a  Planner.  If  you  look  at  the  intricate  mecha- 
nism of  a  watch  it  is  impossible  to  believe  that  it 
made  itself.  The  watch  presumes  a  maker;  the 
universe  presumes  a  God.  If  there  is  a  Being  be- 
hind matter,  they  said  boldly,  if  an  obvious  ar- 
rangement leads  us  back  to  One  who  must  have 
made  the  arrangement,  then  it  becomes  important 
to  know  what  relations  may  possibly  exist  between 
us  and  Him,  what  His  plans  are  respecting  us, 
what  our  manifest  destiny  is,  and  on  what  condi- 
tions that  destiny  can  be  achieved. 

At  that  moment  religion  was  born,  and  its  mis- 


god's  love  and  man's.  8i 

sion  is  to  go  hand  in  hand  with  science  on  a  tour 
of  constant  discovery.  Shoulder  to  shoulder  the 
two  can  soh^e  the  great  problem.  Working  apart, 
with  distrust  of  each  other,  they  are  comparatively 
powerless  and  can  achieve  but  slender  results. 

One  step  more  and  the  divinest  impulse  that 
ever  thrilled  human  nature  entered  the  soul  with 
its  transfiguring  power.  When  religion  stood  be- 
fore the  assembled  hosts  and  announced  that  the 
relation  of  this  Planner  to  us  was  one  of  encour- 
aging, pitying,  forgiving,  and  consoling  love  ;  that 
as  gravitation  is  the  omnipotent  energy  in  the 
physical,  so  love  is  the  all-conquering  force  in  the 
spiritual,  world,  we  were  at  once  equipped  for  the 
battle  with  varying  circumstance  and  changing 
fortune. 

Religion,  when  reduced  to  its  last  analysis,  there- 
fore, puts  just  these  facts  before  you,  and  appeals 
to  your  common  sense  for  strict  obedience — name- 
ly, that  there  is  a  plan,  and  you  are  a  conspicuous 
part  of  it ;  that  the  Planner's  sole  desire  regarding 
you  is  that  you  shall  be  all  you  can  be,  and  the 
best  you  can  be  ;  that  in  the  Nazarene,  God  has  fur- 
nished you  with  a  standard  of  moral  measurement ; 
that  in  the  Bible  He  has  given  you  certain  rules 


82  HERALD    SERMONS. 

which  will  make  your  task  easier ;  and  that  in  His 
unbounded  love  He  has  prepared  a  place  for  you 
when  life's  fitful  fever  is  over.  Religion  is  thus 
simplified  and  put  within  reach  of  the  humblest 
man  to  whom  the  creed  of  the  church  may  be  a 
puzzle  and  a  disappointment.  God's  way  of  sav- 
ing the  soul  is  one  thing;  man's  theological  amend- 
ments and  addenda  to  that  way  are  a  very  differ- 
ent thing. 

Take  love  away  and  life  would  not  be  worth 
living.  Blot  out  the  sun  and  our  system  would 
fall  back  into  chaos.  In  all  its  various  forms  our 
human  love  is  the  dynamic  force  of  progress  and 
civilization.  The  martyr  dies  at  the  stake  for 
love  of  truth ;  the  patriot  dies  on  the  field  for  love 
of  country.  Men  become  heroes  when  they  love 
and  fiends  when  they  hate. 

The  young  man  is  in  the  swirl  of  passion,  care- 
less of  moral  rectitude  and  indifferent  to  the  de- 
mands of  personal  honor.  Love  comes,  a  pure 
emotion,  and  takes  possession  of  his  soul.  It  re- 
strains him,  gives  him  only  the  noblest  aspirations, 
makes  the  former  life  distasteful,  because  the  music 
of  the  new  life  is  better  than  any  song  the  sirens 


god's  love  and  man's.  83 

have  sung.  He  has  a  purpose,  an  ambition.  The 
fairies  have  visited  him,  and  like  Cinderella  he  is 
clothed  in  new  garments. 

No  man  can  be  his  best  self  until  this  entranc- 
ing mystery  has  overshadowed  him.  Not  all  the 
world  can  give  him  the  equivalent  of  one  true  and 
loyal  woman's  love.  Neither  fame  nor  fortune 
can  take  its  place,  for  they  only  serve  to  empha- 
size the  fact  that  the  one  thing  needful  is  not  his. 
With  that  sublime  possession,  however,  he  builds 
a  home,  becomes  the  custodian  of  grave  responsi- 
bilities, broadens  into  a  higher  conception  of  citi- 
zenship, listens  to  the  claims  of  charity,  and  is  am- 
bitious for  that  integrity  which  will  be  the  chief 
inheritance  of  his  children.    * 

God's  love  is  our  religion ;  human  love  is  all 
there  is  of  happiness,  while  it  is  also  the  prophecy 
of  a  hereafter.  The  grandest  picture  which  the 
imagination  can  conceive  is  that  of  the  cross,  with 
the  legend  above  it,  "  God  so  loved  the  world,  that 
He  gave  His  only  begotten  Son;  "  and  the  next 
grandest  is  that  of  an  earthly  home  in  which  the 
same  kind  of  love  draws  father,  mother,  and  chil- 
dren around  the  hearthstone  to  live  their  little  lives 


84  HERALD    SERMONS. 

in  mutual  helpfulness  and  look  forward  to  another 
Home,  where  there  are  no  tears,  by  whose  door  no 
hearse  ever  rumbles,  in  whose  vicinity  is  no  church- 
yard, but  where  the  departed  wait  for  the  coming 
of  those  who  have  not  yet  been  summoned. 


PRAYER. 

"  Pray  without  ceasing." — I  Thess.  v.  17. 

We  are  frequently  told  that  prayer  is  a  duty, 
but  it  is  vastly  more  than  that — it  is  a  privilege. 

We  might  go  still  further  and  say  that  it  is  a 
necessity.  All  men  pray  either  consciously  or  un- 
consciously— even  the  atheist,  who  recognizes  a 
blind  Force  in  the  universe  which  may  either  fall 
with  crushing  weight  or  bear  him  to  good  fortune, 
and  to  that  Force  he  utters  an  ejaculation  in  the 
emergency,  as  though  it  could  hear  and  save. 

Prayer  is  either  an  offering  of  gratitude  or  a 
petition  for  help.  If  the  Christian's  faith  is  genu- 
ine he  keeps  the  way  always  open  between  him- 
self and  heaven  ;  feels  quite  a  liberty,  under  all 
circumstances,  to  state  his  case  in  his  own  terms ; 
is  sure  that  the  Lord  has  not  retired  beyond  hear- 
ing distance,  and  that  what  he  asks  for  will  be 
granted  if  on  the  whole  it  is  best  that  it  should  be. 

85 


86  HERALD    SERMONS. 

This  relation  between  us  and  tlie  upper  world 
incites  to  noble  action  and  mightily  repels  from 
vicious  practices.  To  use  a  homely  illustration: 
When  a  man  is  possessed  by  the  grand  passion  of 
his  life,  the  purity  of  the  woman  whom  he  loves  is 
in  some  subtle  way  transferred  to  his  own  soul. 
That  love  both  restrains  and  urges,  not  in  her 
presence  only,  but  also  in  her  absence.  She  may 
be  invisible  for  a  time,  but  she  still  controls  him. 
The  deed  which  he  would  do  without  compunc- 
tion if  he  had  no  such  love  becomes  impossible 
because  in  imagination  her  eyes  are  always  look- 
ing into  his.  A  good  woman's  love,  therefore,  is 
the  strongest  moral  force  in  any  man's  life,  for  in 
some  mysterious  way  she  has  thrown  his  standard 
down  and  set  up  her  own  in  its  stead. 

In  like  manner  the  knowledge  that  God  is  so- 
licitous for  your  welfare ;  that  the  spirits  of  the 
departed,  like  '*  a  cloud  of  witnesses,"  are  round 
about  you ;  that  all  heaven  is  nigh  at  hand,  can 
scarcely  fail  to  give  that  kind  of  dignity  which 
makes  baseness  repulsive  and  virtue  attractive. 

The  artist  pupil  draws  a  straight  line  when  the 
master  stands  at  his  side,  though  he  may  be  care- 
less when  he  is  alone.      If  the  master  has  a  per- 


PRAYER.  87 

sonal  interest  in  his  pupil  and  says,  **  You  will  do 
grand  work  some  day ;  I  am  always  in  the  studio, 
consult  me  at  your  pleasure,"  the  student  is  en- 
kindled, and  all  the  talent  which  nature  endowed 
him  with  is  brought  to  the  surface. 

To  be  able  to  call  on  the  Father  whenever  our 
urgency  requires  His  presence,  and  to  feel  that  a 
whispered  cry  will  bring  to  our  aid  a  goodly  com- 
pany of  those  invisible  beings  who  "  walk  the  earth 
both  when  we  wake  and  when  we  sleep,"  is  to 
have  our  lives  so  changed  by  what  seems  to  be 
magic  and  what  is  really  mystery  that  our  outlook 
is  brighter,  our  ambition  is  higher,  and  even  our 
afflictions  are  radiant  with  unwonted  hopeful- 
ness. 

There  are  some  practical  details  in  connection 
with  this  subject  which  are  quite  worth  consider- 
ing. 

The  value  of  a  prayer  does  not  depend  in  any 
degree  upon  its  form  or  upon  the  attitude  you 
assume,  but  solely  on  your  filial  confidence  and 
your  earnestness.  You  may  kneel  or  stand  or 
prostrate  yourself,  according  to  the  demands  of 
temperament  or  habit;  you  may  use  the  words 
which  have  been  formulated  by  others,  and  which 


88  HERALD    SERMONS. 

have  been  sanctified  by  the  usage  of  generations, 
or  you  may  express  yourself  in  such  language  as 
you  can  summon  at  the  moment — these  matters 
are  of  no  consequence  whatever. 

If  your  child  feels  grateful  for  the  love  you 
have  bestowed,  or  wishes  to  ask  a  favor  which 
you  may  or  may  not  grant,  according  to  your 
best  judgment,  it  makes  but  little  difference  how 
he  tells  the  story,  provided  his  words  come  warm 
from  his  heart.  But  if  he  thanks  you  in  a  perfunc- 
tory way,  and  gives  you  the  impression  that  he  is 
performing  a  rather  irksome  duty,  he  may  speak 
in  choice  language,  but  his  voice  has  no  music  for 
your  ear.  Everything  depends  on  his  conscious- 
ness that  you  are  his  friend,  and  on  his  eager  and 
complete  appreciation  of  that  fact. 

A  great  many  prayers  are  not  prayers  at  all.  A 
great  many  winged  words  fly  as  high  as  the  roof 
and  then  drop  to  the  ground  again.  One  can 
commit  as  grave  an  offense  by  praying  insincerely 
as  by  not  praying  at  all.  A  soul  is  neither  saved 
nor  helped  by  words  without  feeling,  for  such 
prayers  are  very  close  to  mockery. 

The  true  prayer  is  a  quiet  talk  with  the  Al- 
mighty behind  closed  doors.      Or  one  can  sit  in 


PRAYER.  89 

solitude  and  commune  with  Him  without  uttering 
a  word.  An  eager  but  unuttered  thought  will 
reach  heaven  more  readily  than  the  most  golden 
form  of  speech  that  lacks  either  faith  or  confi- 
dence. Many  of  the  prayers  that  have  called  a 
multitude  of  ministering  spirits  from  the  skies  have 
had  no  other  shape  than  that  of  a  deep  longing  or 
a  simple  ejaculation. 

If  one  is  profoundly  sure  that  the  Infinite  Pres- 
ence envelops  him,  that  an  Infinite  Providence 
guards  and  leads  him,  and  accepts  that  Presence 
and  Providence  as  the  controlling  power  of  his  life, 
he  prays  '*  without  ceasing,"  for  the  spirit  of  prayer 
pervades  his  life.  His  lips  may  never  utter  a 
word,  and  yet  he  communes  with  the  Lord. 

A  great  artist  has  painted  a  picture  in  which 
Christ,  who  is  "  the  Light  of  the  w^orld,"  is  repre- 
sented standing  at  the  door  in  the  night-time  with 
a  lantern  in  His  hand. 

You  mistake,  therefore,  when  you  think  of 
prayer  as  a  ladder  up  v;hich  the  soul  laboriously 
climbs  to  heaven.  The  Man  wath  the  Lantern  is 
always  near  when  the  shadows  fall,  and  if  you 
pray  you  simply  unbolt  the  door  and  bid  Him 
enter.      He  hangs  the  lantern  in  your  room,  say- 


90  HERALD    SERMONS. 

ing,  "  While  the  night  lasts  you  will  need  it ;  when 
the  morning  dawns  I  will  return  and  take  it  to 
other  homes  which  sorrow  has  darkened." 

As  St.  Augustine  said,  "  When  we  read  the 
Word,  God  speaks  to  us ;  when  we  pray  we  speak 
to  Him." 


JUDGING    KINDLY. 

"Neither  do  I  condemn  thee:  go,  and  sin  no  more." — John 
viii.  II. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  dramatic  and  pathetic 
incidents  in  the  career  of  Christ. 

There  was  no  doubt  that  this  woman  had  com- 
mitted an  offense  for  which,  according  to  the  He- 
brew code,  she  merited  death.  The  law  was  ex- 
pHcit  and  the  punishment  was  relentlessly  inflicted. 
It  had  been  the  habit  of  the  people  and  the  custom 
of  the  nation  for  twenty  generations  to  hurl  an  im- 
moral woman  into  eternity  as  one  throws  a  stone 
from  a  sling. 

The  sneering  scribes  and  haughty  Pharisees 
thought  to  embarrass  Christ  in  the  presence  of 
the  multitude.  They  dragged  the  poor,  trembling 
creature  before  Him,  declared  that  she  had  been 
taken  **  in  the  very  act,"  and  then  with  curled  lips 
waited  for  His  verdict.  It  was  a  test  case.  Would 
He  acknowledge   the   authority  of  precedent,   or 

91 


92  HERALD    SERMONS. 

would  He  have  the  audacity  to  repudiate  the  law 
which  had  received  the  sanction  of  Jehovah  ?  In 
other  words,  would  He  surrender  in  the  pinch,  or 
proclaim  Himself  superior  to  the  Voice  that  thun- 
dered from  Sinai  ? 

Jesus  stepped  across  the  boundary  line  which 
divided  the  old  from  the  new  dispensation  when 
He  answered  that  question.  The  Jews  had  been 
taught  to  fear  God ;  He  would  teach  men  to  love 
God.  To  them  God  was  the  implacable  Lav/giver, 
who,  as  Aone  of  Austria  once  said  to  Richelieu, 
'*  is  a  sure  paymaster.  He  may  not  pay  at  the 
end  of  every  week  or  month  or  year,  but  He  pays 
in  the  end."  Christ  would  have  men  believe  that 
God  is  also  a  Father,  and  that  we,  as  His  children, 
are  to  judge  each  other  generously,  because  under 
like  circumstances  we  might  yield  to  the  same 
temptation. 

To  paraphrase,  Christ  said :  "  Let  your  law  be 
obeyed  if  you  will  have  it  so.  But  this  wretched 
criminal  must  not  be  put  to  death  by  men  who 
have  committed  the  same  offense.  If  there  are 
any  among  you  who  are  wholly  innocent  let  them 
execute  judgment." 

Then  followed  that  remarkable  sentence  which 


JUDGING    KINDLY.  93 

Startled  the  moral  sense  of  the  world :  "  Neither 
do  I  condemn  thee:  go,  and  sin  no  more."  Per- 
haps the  crowd  were  surprised ;  possibly  many  of 
them  shook  their  heads  with  indignation.  The 
more  conservative  among  them  may  have  felt  that 
the  dignity  of  the  law  had  been  outraged;  that 
this  Nazarene  had  blundered  in  abrogating  the 
custom  established  by  Moses  and  approved  by  the 
prophets. 

But  we  can  see  that  a  new  principle  was  an- 
nounced. Nobody  will  assert  that  Jesps  could  do 
otherwise  than  condemn  a  criminal  act.  His  whole 
career  is  a  denial  of  such  a  statement.  Neither 
will  any  one  declare  that  He  weakly  yielded  to  the 
pathos  of  the  occasion,  or  that  He  refused  to  con- 
demn in  order  to  defy  the  Pharisees  and  scribes. 

No  such  motive,  but  a  far  nobler  one,  actuated 
Him.  By  the  religion  which  He  represented  we 
are  enjoined  to  judge  the  fallen  with  the  conscious- 
ness that  we  too  may  fall  some  day  ;  to  hate  the 
sin,  but  love  the  sinner,  and  offer  a  helping  hand. 
We  are  to  judge  as  one  brother  would  judge  an- 
other— not  with  indifference  to  guilt,  but  with  pity 
for  the  offender. 

This  is  a  most  thrilling  doctrine,  and  it  opens 


94  HERALD    SERMONS. 

up  a  series  of  duties  which  we  may  find  it  difficult 
to  perform.  It  is  an  easy  thing  to  condemn  a  sin- 
ner, send  him  to  prison,  and  so  forget  all  about 
him.  It  is  a  very  different  thing  to  look  on  a  sin- 
ner with  pitying  eye,  and,  while  condemning  what 
he  has  done,  make  him  feel  that  you  are  his  friend 
and  will  help  him  to  recover  himself. 

The  habit  of  harsh  judgment  is  ungracious,  un- 
gentle, and  unchristian,  but  altogether  too  com- 
mon among  us.  We  are  prone  to  attribute  a  bad 
motive  even  where  it  would  be  possible  to  see  a 
good  motive.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  we 
rather  relish  a  rumor  which  tells  against  a  neigh- 
bor, and  find  a  morbid  comfort  in  the  thought  that 
people  are  not  so  good  as  they  pretend  to  be  or 
seem  to  be. 

If  a  man  gives  largely  to  a  charity  our  first  im- 
pulse is  to  declare  that  there  is  a  purpose  in  it 
which  is  not  quite  as  excellent  as  appearances 
would  indicate.  If  a  woman  commits  an  indiscre- 
tion, either  wilfully  or  through  ignorance,  we  make 
it  by  our  harsh  criticism  just  as  hard  for  her  to 
heal  the  wound  as  possible.  In  a  word,  we  are 
not  helpful  to  each  other,  and  are  much  more  in- 
clined to  shove  an  oflfender  downhill  than  to  pull 


JUDGING    KINDLY.  95 

him  uphill.  We  are  more  apt  to  look  on  the 
darkest  side  of  other  people's  lives  and  to  think 
the  worst  of  them  than  to  look  on  the  bright  side 
and  think  the  best  of  them.  At  the  same  time 
we  would  be  glad  to  have  them  look  at  us  leniently 
and  find  a  good  rather  than  a  bad  motive.  Doing 
unto  others,  however,  as  you  would  have  them  do 
to  you  neither  suits  our  convenience  nor  our 
appetite. 

A  painter  of  ancient  times  was  commanded  to 
make  a  portrait  of  his  monarch.  It  so  happened 
that  his  Majesty  had  a  very  ugly  scar  on  his  face 
which  greatly  disfigured  him.  The  artist,  with 
kindly  diplomacy,  asked  his  sitter  to  lean  his  head 
on  his  hand,  saying  it  would  give  a  finer  pose.  He 
then  deftly  arranged  matters  in  such  a  way  that 
the  fingers  of  the  monarch  entirely  covered  the 
scar,  and  so  the  portrait  was  painted  with  no  scar 
visible. 

If  we  were  to  follow  the  example  of  the  artist 
and  charitably  cover  up  the  scars  on  the  lives  of 
our  friends,  or  if,  conscious  that  we  need  mercy 
ourselves,  we  should  exercise  that  virtue  toward 
others,  or  if,  as  commanded  by  Christ,  we  should 
make,  not  a  weak,  but  a  loving  judgment  of  acts 


96  HERALD    SERMONS. 

which  come  within  our  notice,  we  should  soon  hear 
the  rustle  of  angel  wings  in  this  hard  world,  and 
the  sweet  perfume  of  the  millennium  would  be 
wafted  earthward. 

A  kindly  judgment  is  one  of  the  rarest  things 
on  the  earth,  and  it  is  also  one  of  the  most  excel- 
lent. 


THE    PROBLEM    OF    POVERTY. 

"  For  ye  have  the  poor  always  with  you." — Matt.  xxvi.  1 1. 

DcjES  this  mean  that  there  will  be  poor  people 
to  the  end  of  time  ?  Is  there  no  ideal  society  to- 
ward which  the  race  is  moving,  a  society  in  which 
want  will  be  unknown?  Is  it  impossible  to  so 
arrange  matters  that  there  shall  be  plenty  for  all, 
or  is  civilization,  even  at  its  best,  a  broken  harp, 
some  of  whose  strings  will  forever  jangle  out  of 
tune? 

The  cjuestion  presses  itself  upon  us  just  now, 
for  hardly  ever  in  the  history  of  our  industries  has 
there  been  so  much  sufTering  as  there  promises  to 
be  during  the  coming  winter.  Men  out  of  em- 
ployment are  not  to  be  counted  by  the  thousands, 
but  by  the  hundreds  of  thousands,  and  they  are 
to  endure  pangs  from  no  fault  of  their  own,  but  in 
consequence  of  an  unfortunate  condition  through 
which  the  country  is  slowly  working  its  way 
toward  a  larger  prosperity. 

97 


98  HERALD    SERMONS. 

That  being  the  case  we  naturally  ask  what  can 
be  done  in  the  way  of  relief;  but  the  still  larger 
problem  to  be  solved  is,  Can  society  be  so  reor- 
ganized that  these  periods  of  misery,  in  which 
men  and  women  have  little  or  nothing  to  eat,  may 
be  avoided  ? 

It  is  useless  to  say,  as  some  do,  that  we  are 
suffering  from  the  blunders  of  a  former  adminis- 
tration, because  that  does  not  alter  the  fact.  Our 
only  concern  is  with  poverty,  however  or  by 
whomsoever  caused.  To  throw  the  blame  on  Mr. 
Harrison  or  Mr.  Cleveland  may  satisfy  our  parti- 
zanship,  but  it  does  not  furnish  a  single  loaf  of 
bread  for  a  starving  family. 

What  we  want  to  know  and  what  we  must  know 
before  we  can  set  about  righting  our  wrongs  is 
whether  wretchedness  and  misery  are  inherent 
elements  of  human  progress ;  whether  there  is 
such  a  thing  as  progress  whose  ultimate  end  is 
universal  peace  and  contentment?  If  we  may 
sometime  hope  for  better  things,  then  we  ought 
to  begin  now  to  shape  our  customs  and  laws  for 
their  fulfilment.  If  there  is  no  hope,  then  we 
must  needs  make  the  best  of  our  conditions  and 
alleviate  poverty  in  any  way  that  may  occur  to  us. 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  POVERTY.        99 

It  is  undoubtedly  true  that  the  race  will  always 
be  divided  into  classes.  The  better  off  and  the 
worse  off  will  remain  side  by  side  until  the  millen- 
nial bell  rings.  The  man  of  talent  will  forever 
accumulate,  and  the  man  with  no  talent  will  be  his 
servant.  Men  were  created  neither  free  nor  equal. 
That  is  a  figment  of  the  imagination  which  serves 
the  purpose  of  the  orator,  but  has  no  basis  in  fact. 
Inequalities  of  brain,  of  ambition,  of  shrewdness, 
of  executive  ability,  are  the  first  things  one  sees  in 
the  morning  and  the  last  things  he  sees  at  night. 
There  is  no  reason  to  suppose  that  it  will  ever  be 
otherwise.  There  will  always  be  owners  of  mills 
and  wage-earners  who  do  their  bidding. 

The  solution  is  not  to  be  found,  therefore,  in 
any  Utopian  dream  of  making  everybody's  brain 
of  the  same  weight  or  endowing  him  with  the 
same  moral  or  intellectual  faculties.  There  are 
workers  and  overseers  of  workers — men  who  sit 
in  their  comfortable  offices  and  plan  a  building, 
and  men  who  carry  the  mortar  and  brick  up  the 
ladder. 

It  might  not  be  well  to  have  it  otherwise. 
Drudgery  will  always  have  to  be  done  and  there 
must  always  be  some  one  to  do  it. 


lOO  HERALD    SERMONS. 

But,  since  this  is  so,  the  state  neglects  its  chief 
function  when  it  ceases  to  be  the  providence  of 
the  poor.  It  is  not  our  business  to  regard  life  as 
a  scramble  for  whatever  is  within  reach,  no  matter 
at  what  cost  to  others.  That  policy  is  barbaric 
and  as  far  from  the  scriptural  injunction  as  heaven 
is  from  the  earth.  The  state  should  recognize  the 
wage-earners,  who  are  in  the  majority,  as  its 
special  care,  and  exercise  over  them  a  kind  of 
providential  supervision.  Laws  should  not  dis- 
criminate against  the  unable  and  in  favor  of  the 
able.  Government  should  be  paternal  in  its  widest 
sense  and  offer  every  possible  opportunity  to  its 
citizens  to  better  their  condition.  The  trend  of 
state  enactments  ought  not  to  help  the  strong  to 
get  more  than  their  share,  but  to  help  the  poor  to 
get  what  they  are  entitled  to. 

Our  charities  are  well  enough  in  their  way. 
They  extend  a  helping  hand  to  the  miserable  and 
so  enable  them  to  bridge  over  an  emergency ;  but 
the  better  way  would  be  to  abolish  the  emergency, 
and  then  the  poor  would  need  no  helping  hand. 

Our  public-school  system  illustrates  this  state- 
ment. A  hod-carrier  is  not  more  contented  for 
being  ignorant.      Knowledge  is  power,  because  it 


THE    rROLLEiM    OF    POVERTY.  lOI 

enables  a  man  to  keep  his  eyes  open  and  make 
the  highest  use  of  his  opportunities.  We  insist 
that  even-  child  shall  learn  something,  and  we 
drive  him  to  school  against  his  wishes  because  the 
time  will  come  when  what  he  knows  will  assist 
him  to  earn  his  bread. 

Why  should  not  the  state  establish  schools  for 
the  mechanic  arts  and  graduate  every  year  a  large 
number  of  skilled  workmen?  This  has  been  done 
in  some  sections  with  grand  results.  A  man  who 
knows  hov.'  is  better  equipped  than  one  who  does 
not  know  how.  Education  is  the  corner-stone  of 
happiness,  and  if  we  could  lift  the  under-classes  by 
teaching  them  to  do  better  work  we  should  relieve 
half  of  the  distress  which  excites  our  sympathy. 

If  brotherliness  prevailed,  if  our  religion  were  a 
matter  of  living  instead  of  believing,  there  are  a 
thousand  evils  which  could  be  removed.  We  may 
always  ha\'e  the  poor  with  us,  but  it  is  not  neces- 
sary that  they  should  starve,  and  when  we  become 
more  Christian  we  shall  see  to  it  that  they  do  not 
starve. 


ONLY   A    STEP    TO    HEAVEN. 

"And  he  said,  Who  art  Thou,  Lord?  And  the  Lord  said,  I 
am  Jesus  whom  thou  persecutest." — Acts  ix.  5. 

The  incident  referred  to  opens  a  very  wide 
door,  and  introduces  us  to  a  series  of  thoughts 
which  are  not  more  starthng  than  they  are  helpful. 

St.  Paul  was  apparently  a  man  of  strong  preju- 
dices as  well  as  strong  convictions.  He  had  a 
courage  which  extended  to  rashness.  A  conser- 
vative of  fierce  temper,  he  could  tolerate  no  inva- 
sion of  the  old-time  Hebraism  which  had  been 
sanctified  by  the  sufferings  as  well  as  the  victories 
of  many  generations. 

When  this  new  religion  of  the  Nazarene  began 
to  stir  the  people,  it  had  a  tendency  to  lessen  their 
allegiance  to  the  synagogue,  its  doctrines  and  its 
forms  of  worship.  Paul,  therefore,  perhaps  with- 
out inquiring  into  its  merits,  hated  it  with  a  deadly 
hatred.  "  Breathing  out  threatenings  and  slaugh- 
ter," armed  with  letters  from  the  high  priest  giv- 
102 


ONLY    A    STEP   TO    HEAVEN.  103 

ing  him  authority  over  both  men  and  women,  he 
was  on  the  road  to  Damascus  with  a  boundless 
fury  in  his  heart  and  a  determination  to  crush  the 
spiritual  rebellion  by  the  most  heroic  measures. 

Just  before  he  reached  the  city  a  light  shone 
round  him  which  seemed  to  be  supernatural,  and 
the  stillness  of  the  air  was  broken  by  a  Voice 
which  came  from  the  lips  of  some  invisible  person- 
age. A  communication  was  made  to  him  which 
he  evidently  regarded  as  coming  from  the  other 
world,  for  from  that  instant  the  whole  plan  of  his 
life  was  changed.  His  desire  to  persecute  the 
followers  of  the  Master  was  transformed  into  a  vow 
to  defend  them  even  at  the  hazard  of  his  own  life. 

It  is  safe  to  say  that  this  incident  is  as  reliable 
as  most  others  which  have  come  to  us  from  remote 
times.  There  is  no  good  reason  why  we  may  not 
accept  it  as  veritable  history. 

Moreover  it  is  corroborated  by  similar  experi- 
ences which  have  occurred  from  time  to  time  since 
the  days  of  Paul.  There  is  hardly  a  household 
which  cannot  relate  an  incident  of  a  like  nature, 
and  we  are  forced  to  the  conclusion  that  there  are 
more  beings  who  are  invisible  than  there  are  be- 
ings visible,  and  that  the  visible  and  the  invisible 


I04  HERALD    SERMONS. 

are  supplied  with  means  of  communicating  with 
each  other. 

It  is  useless  for  the  Christian  to  declare  that 
such  miracles,  if  they  are  miracles,  were  confined 
to  the  limits  of  a  given  period.  He  must  accept 
what  happens  to-day  as  well  as  what  happened 
centuries  ago.  God  has  not  changed  His  relations 
to  men,  and  the  necessities  of  human  nature  are 
just  as  urgent  as  ever.  If  angels  talked  with  mor- 
tals from  the  time  of  Adam  to  the  days  succeed- 
ing the  crucifixion,  it  is  folly  to  suppose  that  the 
curtain  dropped  and  we  have  ever  since  been  left 
without  the  companionship  of  ''  a  cloud  of  wit- 
nesses." We  must  either  throw  the  Bible  over- 
board as  a  tissue  of  imaginary  events,  or  believe, 
as  every  generation  has  believed,  that  the  great 
falsehood  of  history  is  that  there  is  "  a  bourn  from 
whence  no  traveler  returns." 

If  God  is  really  a  presence  in  the  world,  then 
He  must  be  a  continuously  revealing  presence. 
There  is  a  kind  of  absurdity  in  the  statement  that 
He  has  spoken,  but  refuses  to  do  so  any  more. 
If  He  ever  spoke  it  is  certainly  true  that  He  still 
speaks.  He  has  neither  become  indifferent  nor 
has  He  retired  to  some  distant  corner  of  the  uni- 


ONLY    A    STEP    TO    HEAVEN.  105 

verse  whence  His  voice  cannot  be  heard  except  as 
a  dull  and  uncertain  echo. 

The  upper  air  is  peopled  by  the  departed. 
Death  does  not  destroy  the  whole  of  us ;  it  simply 
separates  by  mysterious  alchemy  the  mortal  from 
the  immortal,  and  it  is  only  a  short  journey  from 
this  world  to  the  other.  While  we  are  saying  our 
good-night  to  the  dying  they  are  listening  to  a 
good-morning  from  those  who  have  joined  the 
majority. 

We  suffer  from  a  sense  of  separation,  but  they 
enjoy  the  pleasures  of  reunion.  To  die  is  gain 
in  a  very  broad  sense,  for  it  is  an  exchange  of 
hampering  conditions  for  a  life  without  limitation. 
Death  is  merely  the  transportation  of  a  peasant  to 
a  palace,  the  environment  of  which  gives  him  op- 
portunities he  never  dreamed  of.  We  shed  bitter 
tears  at  a  grave,  but  there  is  more  or  less  selfish- 
ness in  our  grief.  If  we  had  full  faith  in  the  future 
the  mufiRed  sound  of  sighs  would  be  followed  by 
a  solemn  conviction  that,  while  we  are  somewhat 
the  worse  off  by  what  we  call  bereavement,  the 
departed  loved  one  is  much  the  better  off. 

That  is  the  ideal  religion,  and  because  we  have 
not  yet  attained  to  it  we  robe  ourselves  in  mourn- 


I06  HERALD    SERMONS. 

ing,  as  though  some  great  disaster  had  befallen 
those  who  go  as  well  as  those  who  remain.  If  we 
had  no  thought  of  self  we  should  dress  in  white 
rather  than  black,  for  the  dead  have  won  their 
victory  and  become  immortal. 

Still  further,  it  is  an  inexpressible  loss  to  the 
religious  life  that  we  do  not  realize  the  radiant 
fact  that  solicitous  and  helpful  influences  are  round 
about  us  in  our  struggle  with  circumstances. 
Every  loved  one  who  has  gone  is  as  conscious  of 
our  doubts  and  fears  as  when  he  was  at  our  side. 
Neither  his  afifection  nor  his  power  to  aid  has  been 
abated.  In  a  thousand  ways  unknown  to  us  he 
gives  us  strength  for  the  conflict  and  peace  of  mind 
in  our  perplexity.  By  unspoken  words  he  talks  with 
us,  and  our  souls  and  his  hold  intimate  communion. 

Were  that  not  true,  then  our  lives  would  be 
heavily  and  darkly  overshadowed.  But  it  is  true^ 
and  we  are  compelled  by  many  an  unexplained 
experience  to  believe  it.  It  is  a  doctrine  of  Holy 
Writ ;  it  is  verified  by  the  history  of  every  home ; 
it  is  a  component  part  of  practical  religion ;  it  is  a 
statement  of  fact  which  redeems  us  from  despair 
and  gives  us  good  cheer  because  heaven  and  we 
are  not  far  from  each  other. 


•'FEED    MY    LAMBS." 

"  Inasmuch  as  ye  have  done  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these  My 
brethren,  ye  have  done  it  unto  Me." — Matt.  xxv.  40, 

It  is  a  Strange  statement  that  one  can  do  his 
Prince  a  personal  service  by  giving  a  loaf  of  bread 
to  one  of  the  hungry  peasants  of  His  kingdom. 

It  obliterates  the  traditional  idea  of  caste,  and 
holds  the  rich  responsible  for  the  condition  of  the 
poor. 

The  powerful  are  guardians  of  the  weak  under 
the  sovereignty  of  God. 

If  you  have  enough  and  to  spare — that  is  the 
teaching  of  Christian  philosophy — your  surplus  is 
not  your  own;  it  belongs  to  those  whose  larders 
are  empty. 

The  injunction  to  "  feed  My  lambs  "  never  rum- 
bled more  resonantly  than  now,  and  never  seemed 
more  like  the  commanding  thunder  of  Sinai. 

And  be  it  also  said  in  very  truth,  and  to  the 
credit  of  our  city,  no  opportunity  to  extend  a 
9 107 


I08  HERALD    SERMONS. 

generous  and  helping  hand  was  ever  more  eagerly 
embraced  by  the  citizens  of  New  York. 

A  tidal  wave  of  sympathy  and  pity  is  sweeping 
over  the  community,  and  the  recognition  of  dis- 
tress is  being  followed  by  a  universal  desire  to 
alleviate  its  pangs. 

One  hundred  thousand  laborers  are  out  of  em- 
ployment through  no  fault  of  their  own.  They 
are  sturdy  fellows,  most  of  them,  and  many  of 
them  are  fathers  of  families,  with  a  stormy  winter 
ahead  and  no  coal  for  the  stove  and  no  work,  ex- 
cept what  chance  may  bring.  Three  quarters  of 
them  are  steady-going  men,  who  are  always  ready 
to  exchange  honest  labor  for  honest  wages,  and 
have  no  other  ambition  than  to  demand  of  circum- 
stances the  means  to  purchase  clothing  and  food 
for  themselves,  their  wives,  and  their  children. 
The  world,  they  truly  say,  ought  to  give  them 
enough  for  their  toil  to  fill  their  mouths  and  fur- 
nish them  with  shelter. 

And  so  it  does  in  ordinary  times.  When  no 
catastrophe  befalls  our  industries  there  are  no 
people  on  the  round  globe  more  contented  than 
these. 

And  be  it  said,  further,  that  the  laboring  classes, 


''FEED    MY    LAMBS."  1 09 

this  seventeen  million  of  wage- earners  scattered 
throughout  the  country,  the  producers  of  every- 
thing that  goes  to  market,  are  exceptionally  clean 
morally,  and  intellectually  equal  to  the  burden  of 
political  responsibility.  They  lead  pure  Hves,  and 
in  many  instances  heroic  lives.  Their  struggles 
are  often  knightly  and  their  sacrifices  are  worthy 
of  the  poet's  song.  There  is  as  much  true  man- 
hood, as  much  honor,  as  great  a  bulk  of  common 
sense  among  them  as  can  be  found  elsewhere  in 
the  community. 

But  once  in  a  while  an  emergency  arises  which 
closes  our  mills,  blocks  manufacture,  and  changes 
industry  from  a  rapid  current  to  a  stagnant  eddy. 
The  laborer  is  not  to  be  blamed,  but  he  is  the  chief 
suflferer.  When  the  avalanche  comes  rushing 
down,  the  far-sighted  are  forewarned.  They  get 
out  of  its  way  and  their  homes  are  untouched. 
The  ragged  edge  of  the  monster  may  sweep  away 
part  of  their  fortunes,  but  the  w^olf  never  comes 
near  their  doors.  The  poor,  however,  are  always 
in  the  direct  road  of  the  avalanche,  and  there  is 
no  escape.  When  the  mill-stream  runs  dry  they 
have  nothing  to  eat.  When  the  looms  are  still 
the  last  penny  takes  flight, 


I  lO  HERALD    SERMONS. 

And  yet  they  must  live.  The  question  is,  How? 
The  terrors  of  poverty  are  upon  them,  and  what 
can  they  do?  That  problem  has  stimulated  the 
imagination  of  the  political  economist,  but  he  has 
not  yet  solved  it.  Is  there  any  higher  law,  are 
there  any  legislative  enactments,  by  which  these 
disasters  may  be  averted  ?  Is  society  badly  organ- 
ized or  is  the  difficulty  interwoven  into  the  fibers 
of  human  nature  ?  There  is  always  plenty  for 
the  few :  why  should  there  be  starvation  for  the 
many  ? 

Something,  some  demon  of  exigency,  has  its 
iron  fingers  on  our  throat,  and  we  gasp.  Is  there 
no  way  to  kill  the  devil  of  disaster? 

We  have  nothing  to  do  with  that  matter  just 
now;  we  simply  deal  with  facts  as  we  find  them, 
and  try  to  meet  the  case  as  it  stands. 

The  Herald  is  working  along  the  lines  of  public 
duty,  which  should  also  be  regarded  as  public 
privilege.  There  is  spare  clothing  enough  in  ten 
thousand  closets  to  cover  the  nakedness  of  the 
city.  Take  it  down  and  give  it  to  the  distressed. 
You  will  not  miss  it,  but  they  may  die  for  want  of 
it.  It  is  one  of  your  luxuries ;  it  is  their  necessity. 
While  it  hangs  on  the  closet-peg  it  does  no  one 


"  P^EEI)    MV    LAMi;S.  Ill 

any  good  ;  in  the  hands  of  a  discreet  committee  it 
may  save  some  poor  man  the  sorrow  of  a  funeral. 

And  there  is  money  enough  in  generous  pockets 
to  help  this  hundred  thousand  idlers  to  bridge  the 
frosty  winter.  We  are  not  encouraging  a  discon- 
tented mob — we  are  offering  our  sympathy  to  a 
struggling  crowd  who  would  not  seek  assistance 
but  that  their  children  are  crying.  These  hungry 
folk,  so  Christ  said,  are  of  the  same  royal  lineage 
with  ourselves — unfortunate  members  of  the  same 
great  family.  We  are  ahke  in  birth,  in  death,  and 
in  destiny.  So  large  is  His  pity  that  He  begs  us 
to  fly  to  their  relief,  saying  that  if  we  do  a  service 
to  one  of  the  least  of  these  we  do  it  to  Him. 

But  we  need  not  use  the  language  of  urgency. 
The  people  of  New  York  are  quite  alive  to  the 
gravity  of  the  situation.  They  have  already  given 
grandly,  and  thus  far  no  abatement  of  their  gen- 
erosity can  be  detected. 

The  poor  must  be  saved  from  suffering  until 
better  days  dawn,  and  the  people  will  see  to  it 
that  nothing  is  wanting,  either  in  funds  or  organ- 
ization, to  accomplish  their  noble  and  charitable 
purpose. 


THE    BEST    KIND    OF    RELIGION. 

"Verily  I  say  unto  you,  If  ye  have  faith,  and  doubt  not." — 
Matt.  xxi.  21. 

It  is  customary  with  preachers  to  tell  their 
people  that  faith  in  certain  revealed  truths  is 
a  condition  of  acceptance  with  God  in  the  here- 
after. 

If,  however,  one  believes  for  the  sake  of  going 
to  heaven,  he  is  a  mercenary  creature  and  does 
not  deserve  to  go  there. 

In  like  manner,  if  one  obeys  the  commandments 
in  order  to  avoid  the  torments  of  another  world, 
he  is  as  far  removed  from  any  true  idea  of  religion 
as  the  north  pole  is  from  the  south. 

In  the  one  case  a  man  yields  to  a  subtle  kind  of 
bribery  which  promises  to  give  what  he  most  de- 
sires, and  in  the  other  he  surrenders  to  a  threat 
which  he  has  been  taught  to  dread  and  would  like 
to  avoid. 

It  must  be  true  that  in  the  plan  of  a  just  God 


THE    BEST    KIND    OF    RELIGION.  II 3 

there  is  no  such  thing  as  bribery,  either  in  the 
shape  of  a  threat  or  a  promise. 

It  is  not  the  peculiarity  of  faith  that  it  is  the 
coin  with  which  you  purchase  heaven,  but  that  it 
so  forms  your  character  that  you  cannot  be  kept 
out  of  heaven  because  you  have  a  right  to  go 
there. 

And  the  pecuHarity  of  habitual  doubt  is  that 
the  life  which  is  produced  by  it  demoralizes  the 
character  and  renders  it  spiritually  impossible  for 
you  to  cross  the  threshold  of  hea\en  because  you 
would  not  be  in  the  company  of  your  peers. 

Every  man  here  and  hereafter  finds  his  ow^n 
place  by  a  law  of  gravitation  which  is  inexorable. 
It  is  the  same  kind  of  law  which  in  physical  con- 
cerns makes  the  apple  fall  to  the  ground  and  the 
balloon  rise  to  the  clouds. 

We  are  so  constituted — at  least  the  large  major- 
ity of  mankind  are — that  certain  affirmative  ideas 
produce  a  largeness  of  soul,  while  opposite  ideas 
produce  opposite  results.  To  secure  the  results, 
therefore,  it  is  necessary  to  possess  one's  self  of 
the  ideas  which  correspond  to  them. 

There  is  nothing  arbitrary  about  this;  it  is  sim- 
ply a  matter  of  logic  and  law.      Religion  does  not 


114  HERALD    SERMONS. 

represent  the  caprice  of  a  Creator  who,  *'  for  his 
own  pleasure,"  holds  a  damning  thunderbolt  in 
one  hand  and  the  promise  of  bliss  in  the  other. 
On  the  contrary,  it  represents  an  omnipotent  jus- 
tice which  has  so  arranged  the  tendencies  of  hu- 
man living  and  thinking  that  every  man  drifts  to 
the  place  he  is  best  fitted  to  fill,  and  can  by  no 
chance  occupy  any  other. 

The  value  of  faith  lies  wholly  in  the  fact  that  it 
just  as  inevitably  develops  the  noblest  qualities  as 
the  apple-seed  contains  within  itself  the  possibiHty 
of  a  tree,  a  blossom,  and  the  rich,  ripe  fruit. 

The  horror  of  doubt  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  re- 
duces the  soul  or  the  character  or  the  man — which- 
ever you  please — to  a  minimum,  checks  growth, 
and  induces  a  spiritual  frost  which  nips  the  bud 
and  renders  fruitage  unattainable. 

It  is  evident,  then,  that  a  man  must  believe  in 
something  in  order  to  become  something.  Ideas 
make  or  unmake ;  they  are  both  creative  and  de- 
structive. To  beheve  firmly  in  virtue  is  an  incen- 
tive to  become  virtuous.  Your  pride  in  your 
honor  will  keep  you  honorable. 

That  law  acknowledged,  we  have  a  foundation 
for  reHgion — that  is,  a  religion  of  common  sense. 


THE    BEST    KIND    OF    RELIGION.  II 5 

An  unwavering  faith  in  God,  who  places  you  here 
amid  all  sorts  of  obstacles  that  you  may  prepare 
yourself  for  the  higher  existence  to  which  He  will 
summon  you  by  and  b}- ;  a  fixed  belief  that  a  pure 
life  is  worth  all  it  may  cost,  however  great  that 
cost  shall  be ;  a  calm  and  quiet  trust  in  a  Provi- 
dence which  never  deserts  you,  and  in  the  possi- 
bility of  communicating  by  prayer  with  the  Being 
who  holds  all  things  in  the  hollow  of  His  hand ;  a 
joyful  resignation  to  the  Higher  Will  in  the  dire 
straits  of  affliction  and  bereavement,  the  result  of 
your  conviction  that  He  would  not  send  such  things 
unless  they  were  needed,  and  that  He  is  helping 
you  to  bear  up  under  the  necessary  burden — such 
a  state  of  mind  and  heart  is  just  as  sure  to  soften 
and  mellow  and  enrich  and  ennoble  your  nature 
as  a  seed  is  sure  to  grow  when  properly  planted. 
The  logical  consequence  of  such  faith  is  to  widen 
and  deepen  your  character,  and  that  logic  is  irre- 
sistible. 

On  the  other  hand,  to  have  no  God,  no  Provi- 
dence, no  future  life  to  look  forward  to;  to  have 
no  belief  that  the  right  always  pays  and  the  wrong 
always  hurts ;  to  depend  on  chance  for  what  you 
may  get  out  of  life,  and  on  your  own  pluck  and 


Il6  HERALD    SERMONS. 

will  to  bear  its  sorrows ;  to  love,  and  yet  feel  that 
love  does  not  survive,  but  that  the  dead  child  or 
wife  is  simply  dead  eternally — such  a  state  of 
mind  is  not  merely  depressing,  it  is  a  powerful 
cause  which  will  produce  an  unhappy  effect.  No 
hand  can  stay  the  results  which  must  logically 
follow. 

As  a  practical  question  for  practical  men  to  con- 
sider we  assert  that  the  difference  between  low  and 
high  ideas  of  duty  is  the  difference  between  a  clod 
and  a  god.  Men  may  have  metamorphosed  the 
Christian  religion  into  something  forbidding  and 
repulsive,  but  such  men  have  done  us  great  mis- 
chief and  should  not  be  heeded.  The  Christ  of 
the  New  Testament  is  not  the  Christ  of  theology. 
The  true  Christ  fills  the  heart  with  lofty  ideals, 
conscious  that  from  them  nothing  but  lofty  im- 
pulses can  result,  and  that  is  true  religion. 


WHY    DO    WE    SUFFER? 

"Now  is  My  soul  troubled;  and  what  shall  I  say?  Father, 
save  Me  from  this  hour :  but  for  this  cause  came  I  unto  this  hour. 
Father,  glorify  Thy  name.  Then  came  there  a  voice  from  heaven, 
saying,  I  have  both  glorified  it,  and  will  glorify  it  again." — John 
xii.  27,  28. 

There  is  a  wonderful  bit  of  philosophy  in  these 
words.  They  open  up  to  our  astonished  vision  a 
long  series  of  ideas  which  we  seldom  recognize. 
We  are  lifted  to  the  mountain's  summit  and  get  a 
glimpse  of  the  world  from  an  entirely  new  stand- 
point. We  are  amazed  and  startled,  for  Christ 
practically  commands  us  to  sacrifice  ourselves  in 
order  to  attain  perfection. 

You  are  a  block  of  rough  marble.  You  may 
some  time  come  to  be  a  statue  of  splendid  propor- 
tions, but  you  must  be  chiseled  and  hammered 
before  that  consummation  can  be  reached.  Grief, 
struggle,  disappointment,  the  whole  range  of  sad 
experiences  which  fill  life  so  full,  are  the  tools  with 
which  the  Great  Artist  will  change  your  shape  by 

117 


Il8  HERALD    SERMONS. 

slow  degrees  and  convert  you  from  a  mere  block 
to  a  thing  of  beauty. 

You  may  not  enjoy  the  process  by  which  you 
are  made  to  assume  a  new  form,  and  the  hammer 
of  God  seems  at  times  merciless  in  its  blows ;  but 
every  stroke  of  the  Artist's  arm  has  a  distinct  pur- 
pose, and  in  the  Artist's  heart  is  an  ideal  which 
He  is  compelling  you  to  represent — an  ideal  which 
you  will  most  certainly  represent  when  He  has 
fully  accompHshed  His  task. 

You  stand  face  to  face  with  a  most  grievous  sor- 
row. Your  head  is  bowed,  your  very  soul  suffers 
a  wrench.  But  you  recognize  facts ;  you  are  broad 
enough  and  thoughtful  enough  to  see  that  there 
is  a  meaning  in  it  all.  Or  if  your  eyes  are  so 
blinded  with  tears  that  you  may  not  see,  you  still 
have  a  devout  faith  that  His  way  is  better  than 
your  way,  and  that  submission,  quiet,  serene, 
trustful,  is  the  noblest  attitude  your  soul  can 
assume.  You  believe  that  the  Artist  has  no  other 
purpose  than  to  convert  the  rough  block  of 
marble  into  a  beautiful  statue ;  that  He  takes  no 
pleasure  in  using  the  hammer,  and  is  not  gov- 
erned by  caprice,  but  is  working  with  a  plan  in 
His  mind. 


WHY    DO    WE    SUFFER?  I  19 

Now,  wliat  will  you  say  ?  Your  first  utterance 
is  found  in  the  text,  "  My  soul  is  troubled."  That 
is  inevitable.  You  are  human  and  cannot  help 
shrinking  from  pain.  He  does  not  wish  you  to  do 
otherwise,  but  He  does  wish  you  to  submit,  even 
though  it  be  with  a  groan  or  a  cry  of  agony.  Will 
you,  dare  you  say,  "Save  me  from  this  hour"? 
What  would  become  of  the  marble  block  if  it 
should  pray  the  Artist  not  to  use  the  chisel  or  the 
hammer?  Suppose  the  Artist  should  heed  the 
prayer  and  lay  His  tools  aside  :  what  then  ?  If  you 
have  in  your  body  some  malignant  growth,  will 
you  beseech  the  surgeon  to  save  you  from  the  hor- 
rors of  the  knife  ?  And  would  he  be  your  friend 
if  he  replaced  that  knife  in  its  case  and  left  you  to 
your  fate? 

One  must  have  attained  a  certain  .spiritual  alti- 
tude to  be  able  to  say  to  the  Artist,  *'  Do  what  you 
will,  only  see  to  it  that  when  your  task  is  finished 
I  leave  the  workshop  a  statue  of  noble  propor- 
tions;" or  to  the  surgeon,  '*  I  tremble  at  thought 
of  what  you  are  about  to  do,  but  you  must  not 
heed  my  cry,  and  your  hand  must  do  its  work 
with  inexorable  steadiness  and  relentless  accu- 
racy."     Rut  that   must  be  the  attitude  of  every 


I20  HERALD    SERMONS. 

great  soul  which  desires  perfection  and  health  in- 
stead of  comfort  and  ease. 

The  hardest  but  the  best  thing  to  say  is  "  Fa- 
ther!" in  the  time  of  trouble  and  bereavement. 
With  the  conviction  that  He  is  in  very  reality 
your  Father  well  fixed  in  your  mind,  and  the  re- 
poseful consciousness  in  your  heart  that  your  suf- 
fering is  your  opportunity ;  that  souls  w4iich  have 
never  experienced  agony  are  not  equal  to  souls 
that  have  passed  hours  in  Gethsemane  ;  that  climb- 
ing with  weariness  is  better  than  living  on  the  level 
plain  of  monotonous  good-fortune,  you  are  enabled 
to  say  as  the  Master  did,  "  I  pray  you  not  to  con- 
sider my  wishes,  but  to  do  what  is  best,  though  it 
cost  me  dear.  Make  me  all  I  can  be,  even  though 
I  protest." 

Then  you  see  things  as  God  sees  them.  Then 
the  pathetic  side  of  life,  the  side  that  is  clouded, 
has  a  rich  significance.  You  are  forced  to  look  up 
for  help,  and  looking  up  brings  you  that  mysteri- 
ous peace  that  passeth  understanding. 

It  cannot  be  that  we  are  grieved  and  wounded 
and  bruised  for  nothing. 

If  the  stars  in  their  courses  are  obedient  to  a 
physical  law,  then  behind  the  stars  is  Some  One 


WHY    DO    WE    SUFFER?  121 

who  made  the  law.  If  our  days  and  years  are 
marked  by  sighs  and  tears,  by  death  that  follows 
on  the  heels  of  birth,  by  graves  which  are  within 
arm's-reach  of  cradles,  by  disappointments  which 
cannot  by  any  foresight  be  avoided,  then  these 
things  must  all  be  governed  by  a  spiritual  law,  and 
behind  the  law  must  be  Some  One  who  ordained 
them  for  our  good.  Either  this  is  true  or  the 
universe  is  a  cruel  and  inexplicable  despotism. 

But  it  is  true.  Men  never  see  the  heaven  above 
them  except  when  their  eyes  are  wet.  Sufferings 
are  the  hammer  and  the  chisel ;  God  is  the  Artist 
who  recognizes  the  possibilities  that  are  hidden 
within  us ;  we  are  the  blocks  of  marble,  and  if  we 
are  conscious  of  what  we  may  become  we  cannot 
cry,  **  Father,  save  me  from  this  hour!"  but  must 
needs  pray,  "  Father,  glorify  Thy  name,"  and  then 
angels  will  come  from  the  upper  air  and  minister 
to  us. 


ALL    MEN    ARE    SELF-MADE. 

He  that  soweth  sparingly  shall  reap  also  sparingly." — 2  Cor. 


IX. 


6. 


Every  man  is  the  creator  of  a  world,  and  there- 
in he  is  supreme  until  death  comes  and  orders  him 
to  abdicate. 

There  are  as  many  worlds  as  there  are  men  and 
women.  Each  one  of  them  has  been  created  out 
of  the  chaos  of  circumstance,  and  each  one  does 
credit  or  discredit  to  the  miniature  monarch  who  is 
its  ruler. 

When  God  endowed  man  with  free  agency  it  at 
once  became  possible  for  the  recipient  of  this  dan- 
gerous gift  to  make  his  little  world  a  heaven  or  a 
hell. 

Not  even  the  Almighty  could  say  him  nay,  for 
he  was  as  absolute  as  the  czar  of  Russia.  God 
gave  him  two  injunctions:  ''Do  the  right"  and 
"  Do  no  wrong,"  then  retired,  leaving  the  little 
monarch  to  obey  or  not,  as  he  chose,  and  to  reap 
the  consequences  of  his  choosing. 


ALL    MEN    ARE    SELF-^L\DE.  1 23 

So  far  as  the  Omnipotent  is  concerned  He  has 
distributed  the  really  good  things  of  life  with  an 
even  hand.  Let  us  be  careful  about  this  matter ; 
we  say  the  really  good  things. 

Not  money,  nor  yet  fame,  does  He  include  in 
this  category,  and  it  is  safe  to  presume  that  He 
had  good  reason  therefor. 

The  opportunity  to  increase  the  size  of  the  soul 
is  universal,  like  the  sunshine,  and  there  is  no  nig- 
gardliness in  any  corner  of  the  globe.  Never  yet 
lived  a  man,  whether  he  slept  under  a  thatched 
roof  or  in  a  palace,  who  lacked  the  chance  to  ham- 
mer his  soul  into  some  divine  shape. 

Neither  poverty  nor  riches  are  necessary  to 
character.  One  need  not  go  to  Congress,  or  paint 
a  picture  for  the  Salon,  or  write  a  poem  which 
shall  sing  to  posterity,  or  cross  the  threshold  of 
the  White  House  by  invitation  of  the  people,  in 
order  to  be  fitted  for  heaven. 

God  can  make  great  men  when  He  needs  them 
as  easily  as  we  throw  a  handful  of  sand  in  the  air, 
but  not  even  He  can  make  a  soul  that  is  worth 
looking  at  twice.  That  high  prerogative  rests 
with  the  man  alone  who  is  the  owner  of  the 
soul. 


124  HERALD    SERMONS. 

In  the  eyes  of  the  Almighty  the  hod-carrier 
who  is  honest  is  nobler  than  the  statesman  whose 
eloquence  makes  history  but  who  sells  his  influ- 
ence for  cash  or  preferment. 

It  is  not  environment  but  purpose  that  makes  a 
man  large  or  small. 

Many  of  us  will  find  when  we  overstep  the 
boundary  of  the  beyond  that  we  are  not  received 
with  the  envious  acclamations  which  have  greeted 
us  here,  and  others  will  be  surprised  that  they  are 
cordially  welcomed  there,  though  here  no  one 
doffed  his  hat  when  they  passed. 

Our  theory  of  life  is  not  God's  theory,  and  the 
things  we  work  hardest  for  must  be  left  behind 
when  the  time  comes  to  put  on  our  shroud. 

But  if  the  really  good  things  are  evenly  dis- 
tributed, so  also  are  the  sorrows  of  life.  They 
are  the  fire  and  anvil  in  the  smithy  by  which  crude 
metal  is  changed  to  a  Toledo  blade. 

Disease  never  asks  concerning  a  man's  bank- 
account  when  he  rings  the  door-bell.  He  is  equally 
indifferent  to  all,  and  is  never  swayed  by  favori- 
tism. He  is  past  all  bribery,  and  has  no  compunc- 
tion, but  goes  where  he  is  sent. 

The    millionaire   may   give   his    child   a  gilded 


ALL    MEN    ARE    SELE-iMADE.  1 25 

crutch,  but  it  is  just  as  truly  a  crutch  as  that  of 
the  poor  man's  boy.  A  crutch  is  always  a  crutch, 
and  neither  poverty  nor  wealth  can  make  it  less. 

The  rich  may  place  a  costly  monument  on  a 
grave  and  the  poor  no  monument  at  all,  but  the 
sleepers  sleep  the  same  sleep,  and  the  monument 
counts  for  nothing. 

Bismarck  for  three  years  endured  the  pangs 
of  royal  neglect.  No  more  unhappy  man  than  he 
in  all  Europe.  Like  a  caged  lion  he  chafed.  The 
man  whose  frown  meant  war,  whose  smile  meant 
peace,  was  like  the  poorest  peasant  of  Germany  in 
this — he  suffered. 

The  peasant  boy  was  torn  from  his  home  to  be- 
come a  soldier;  the  statesman  has  been  banished. 
The  cup  of  the  one  and  the  bowl  of  the  other  were 
brimming  full.  They  were  both  alike  in  their  ill 
fortune.  The  first  was  a  clumsy  youth  whom  no 
one  will  ever  hear  of ;  the  other  was  a  prince  who 
will  never  be  forgotten.  The  difference  between 
the  two  in  the  matter  of  happiness  or  misery  is 
not  perceptible. 

Your  surroundings  count  for  very  little ;  your 
character  counts  for  a  good  deal.  A  man  is  not 
noble  because  he  has  a  title  and  is  permitted  to 


126  HERALD    SERMONS. 

talk  with  kings.  There  are  great  souls  dressed  in 
tatters  and  small  souls  -robed  in  purple. 

By  and  by  we  shall  see  what  our  eyes  are  now 
too  dull  to  perceive — that,  whatever  our  station  in 
life,  we  make  our  own  misery  and  happiness,  and 
neither  wealth  nor  poverty  has  anything  to  do 
with  them.  The  creative  power  is  in  the  heart, 
the  purpose,  the  aim. 

Pity  it  is  that  we  remain  so  long  blinded  to  this 
fact. 


HEROES   AND    HEROINES. 

"  And  God  said,  Let  us  make  man  in  our  image,  after  our  like- 
ness."— Gen.  i,  26. 

There  is  something  exceedingly  encouraging 
in  this  statement  with  which  the  Bible  opens,  be- 
cause it  places  man  on  a  high  level. 

The  work  of  creation  was  well-nigh  finished; 
the  myriads  of  stars  had  wheeled  into  line,  ready 
for  their  march  through  the  ages  ;  the  earth  teemed 
with  fruitfulness,  every  manner  of  creature  rejoiced 
in  life,  and  the  whole  machinery  of  the  universe 
had  been  set  in  motion. 

And  yet  a  sense  of  incompleteness  prevailed. 
Something  was  wanting  which  would  give  signifi- 
cance to  the  whole.  Without  that  something  all 
that  had  been  done  would  fall  short  of  perfection. 
Then  came  the  imperative  suggestion,  "  Let  us 
make  man."  But  what  kind  of  a  being  should  he 
be?  The  innumerable  host  of  angels  and  arch- 
angels must  have  been  filled  with  curiosity  as  they 

127 


128  HERALD    SERMONS. 

looked  on  the  wondrous  spectacle  of  revolving 
worlds,  conscious  that  the  purpose  of  creation  was 
yet  to  be  revealed.  The  house  had  been  built, 
but  it  was  without  an  occupant.  *'  What  shall  be 
the  shape  and  what  the  characteristics  of  this  new 
being?"  they  asked,  and  the  answer  came  back, 
"  Let  us  make  man  in  our  image,  after  our  like- 
ness." 

Then  he  must  be  a  creature  with  aspirations, 
with  a  thousand  possibilities,  with  a  royal  nature, 
with  the  capacity  for  exercising  sovereignty  over 
physical  forces  and  over  himself — a  very  god  in 
miniature,  whose  manifest  destiny  is  the  compan- 
ionship which  heaven  provides. 

It  may  be  true  that  we  are  prone  to  evil,  that 
we  succumb  to  temptation,  that  we  have  accumu- 
lated an  appalling  amount  of  depravity,  but  the 
likeness  to  God  is  still  in  the  soul  and  has  not 
been  effaced.  Theologians  may  tell  us  that  this 
depravity  is  total ;  but  no  man  can  sit  in  impartial 
judgment  on  himself  without  seeing  that  the  ele- 
ments of  true  greatness  remain  and  can  be  so  de- 
veloped that  he  shall  become  wholly  good  instead 
of  partly  bad.  The  dignity  of  human  nature  is 
a  persistent  fact  which  no  amount  of  theological 


HEROES    AND    HEROINES.  1 29 

controversy  can  eliminate,  and  no  man  in  all  the 
multitude  but  feels  at  times  the  pulsing  of  higher 
hopes  and  the  consciousness  that  he  may  yet  fulfil 
his  mission. 

Men  and  women  are  nobler  than  we  think.  In 
the  great  fabric  of  the  community  are  golden 
threads  of  personal  heroism,  of  self-sacrifice,  of 
calm  and  quiet  endurance,  never  told  by  orator, 
never  sung  by  poet.  The  heroes  and  heroines  of 
ordinary  life  are  too  numerous  for  counting.  Men 
and  women  are  daily  facing  emergencies  which 
require  a  loftier  courage  than  was  ever  displayed 
on  the  field  of  battle.  That  physical  daring  which 
under  excitement  and  the  impulse  of  a  love  of 
glory  stands  amid  shot  and  shell  and  bears  the 
flag  aloft  through  a  shower  of  bullets  may  be  alto- 
gether admirable,  and  is  certainly  worthy  of  the 
rewards  of  honor  which  it  receives ;  but  there  is  a 
nobler  daring,  and  it  deserves  a  far  higher  meed  of 
praise,  as  when  the  young  man  catches  a  glimpse, 
by  a  flash  of  lightning  through  tlie  darkness,  of  the 
inevitable  results  of  his  evil  life,  and  with  a  mighty 
effort  breaks  from  the  entanglement  of  vicious 
habits,  and  in  spite  of  cajoleries  and  gibes  and 
jeers  claims   possession  of  himself  and  maintains 


I30  HERALD    SERMONS. 

the  claim  with  a  will  that  no  circumstances  can 
break. 

Who  can  tell  how  many  experiences  of  this 
kind  occur  every  year  in  a  city  like  this?  Few 
hear  of  them,  for  they  are  wrought  in  silence  or 
solitude.  Such  a  Hercules  does  not  become 
famous  by  his  achievement,  but  he  is  nobler  than 
any  Olympic  god  that  ever  found  a  place  in  history 
or  mythology. 

There  are  wives  who  bear  the  brunt  of  ill  for- 
tune without  a  murmur,  husbands  who  struggle 
with  poverty,  or  impending  poverty,  with  a  calm 
fortitude  which  excites  the  pity  of  the  '*  cloud  of 
witnesses  "  in  the  upper  air;  both  men  and  women 
who  have  secret  sufferings  so  great  that  their 
hearts  are  beating  a  dead-march  to  the  grave,  but 
from  whose  lips  no  word  of  complaint  escapes  ;  and 
girls  by  the  score  who  keep  themselves  unspotted 
in  spite  of  fate,  preferring  the  loneliness  of  a  dingy 
room  with  honesty  for  company  to  the  gaudy 
surroundings  which  are  bought  with  impurity  of 
life. 

These  are  not  rare  instances  by  any  means.  If 
you  could  peer  into  the  souls  of  passers-by  you 
would  find  them  at  every  corner.     These  are  the 


HEROES    AND    HEROINES.  131 

silent  gods  and  goddesses  of  our  modern  day, 
whose  statues  are  not  to  be  found  in  any  Pan- 
theon, but  will  certainly  be  found  in  the  temple  of 
eternity.  They  belong  to  the  unrecognized  nobil- 
ity— to  that  peerage  of  God  who  are  doomed  to 
suffering  to-day,  but  will  rejoice  with  great  glad- 
ness to-morrow. 

One  illustration  will  suffice.  It  is  a  pathetic 
story,  but  it  is  also  a  true  one.  The  aged  father 
needed  constant  care,  and  the  dau^jhter,  thinkinsf 
her  first  duty  was  to  him,  bade  her  suitors  good- 
night. While  watching  at  his  side  she  developed 
a  frightful  and  j3erhaps  fatal  malady.  Though  she 
might  be  saved  by  an  operation  she  refused  to 
submit  lest  anxiety  should  hasten  the  parent's 
death.  *'  I  am  nothing,"  she  said;  "  he  is  every- 
thing," and  so  the  malady  reinforced  itself  week 
by  week.  She  deliberately  and  knowingly  spent 
herself  for  him,  and  he  fell  into  his  last  sleep  un- 
conscious of  the  sacrifice  which  that  noble  soul 
was  making. 

Total  depravity?  It  is  blasphemy  to  utter  the 
words  in  such  a  connection.  Better  far  the  lan- 
guage of  Genesis,  "  Let  us  make  man  in  our  im- 
age, after  our  likeness." 


132  HERALD    SERMONS. 

Human  nature  is  like  an  armful  of  hickory  in 
the  fireplace,  with  an  armful  of  pine  underneath. 
The  hickory  needs  only  to  be  kindled  and  it  will 
fill  the  room  with  genial  heat.  Men  and  women 
can  do  anything  under  the  proper  influence.  The 
capacity  is  there ;  supply  the  motive,  and  there  is 
no  degree  of  heroism  which  may  not  be  attained. 


BEARING    GOOD    FRUIT. 

"  The  truth  of  the  gospel  .  .  .  bringeth  forth  fruit." — Col.  i. 
5,6. 

Every  tree  that  was  designed  to  be  fruit-bear- 
ing will  accomplish  its  mission,  but  in  its  wild  state 
it  will  produce  very  poor  -  fruit.  It  may  be  a 
beautiful,  symmetrical,  and  vigorous  tree,  but  the 
apples  or  pears  which  load  its  branches  are  quite 
useless  for  domestic  purposes. 

The  intelligent  farmer  recognizes  the  fact  that 
he  can  change  the  character  of  his  wild  trees  and 
force  them  to  produce  something  of  marketable 
value.  In  the  course  of  a  few  years  he  can  so 
alter  the  complexion  of  affairs  that  he  will  have  a 
profitable  orchard.  He  may  possibly  throw  a  few 
bushels  of  compost  about  the  roots  in  order  to  give 
them  a  better  opportunity,  or,  in  the  language  of 
modern  psychology,  furnish  them  with  a  new  en- 
vironment, but  something  more  is  necessary.   The 

^3Z 


134  HERALD    SERMONS. 

roots  are  perfectly  willing  to  do  their  proper  work, 
and  the  sap  runs  through  the  ordained  channels 
with  freedom  and  avidity,  but  the  apples  are  still 
poor  and  small  and  bitter. 

Then  he  purchases  at  some  nursery  a  number 
of  slips  from  a  famous  kind  of  fruit-bearer,  whose 
apples  are  rosy  and  large  and  luscious.  With  his 
knife  he  lops  off  the  branches  of  his  wild  apple- 
tree  near  the  trunk  and  grafts  thereon  these  pur- 
chased slips.  The  roots  of  the  wild  tree  do  not 
object  to  the  change,  for  they  send  the  sap  to 
heal  the  wound  and  seem  to  be  proud  that  the 
substitution  has  been  made.  In  good  time  the 
useless  wild  apple-tree  becomes  the  king  of  the 
orchard,  and  its  fruit  repays  the  farmer  for  all  his 
trouble. 

Human  nature  is  also  wild.  Left  to  itself,  un- 
checked by  restraints,  unimpelled  by  lofty  aspira- 
tions, it  is  vigorous,  and  in  many  respects  admi- 
rable, but  it  does  not  produce  the  best  results  of 
which  it  is  capable. 

Man  has  an  unmeasured,  if  not  an  immeasurable, 
capacity  for  self-development,  and  it  may  be  true, 
for  aught  we  know,  that  with  time  enough  he 
might  gradually  evolve  into  a  philosopher  and  a 


P.EARINCi    GOOD    IkriT.  1 35 

saint ;  but  it  is  also  true  that  by  furnishing  him 
with  certain  ideas  and  hopes  and  motives  you  can 
give  him  at  once  what  it  would  require  ages  to 
acquire.  In  like  manner  it  may  be  possible  for  the 
wild  apple-tree  to  change  its  character  and  by  slow 
improvement  produce  the  kind  of  fruit  which  the 
farmer  forces  it  to  bear  in  three  or  four  years  by 
the  process  of  grafting. 

Now  religion  supplies  us  with  the  incentives 
which  are  necessary  to  the  best  quality  of  man- 
hood. It  takes  our  caprices  and  passions  and 
recklessness  and  crude  ambitions  in  hand,  appeals 
first  to  the  brain  and  then  to  the  heart,  places 
before  us  an  ideal,  tells  us  we  are  quite  able  to 
accomplish  great  things  and  to  make  our  lives 
valuable  to  ourselves  and  to  the  community,  and 
then  commands  us  to  fight  the  good  fight  like  a 
chevalier  without  fear  and  without  reproach. 

The  man  who  is  not  conscious  of  an  obligation 
to  leave  something  better  in  the  world  at  his  death 
than  was  to  be  found  there  at  his  birth  does  not 
understand  the  highest  purpose  of  life.  Every 
one's  years  and  example  and  character  ought  to 
count  for  something.  It  may  be  more  or  it  may 
be  less,   but   it  should  be  something.      A  purely 


136  HERALD    SERMONS. 

selfish  life,  even  when  it  is  crowned  with  a  kind  of 
success,  such  as  wealth  or  literary  achievement  or 
fame  in  any  of  its  shapes,  is  worth  less  in  the  way 
of  general  happiness  than  the  life  of  the  humblest 
artisan  who  has  made  the  most  of  his  environment 
and  the  best  of  himself. 

The  object  of  religion,  then,  is  to  draw  out  your 
finer  qualities,  and  that  is  most  effectively  done  by 
giving  you  ideas,  moral  principles,  and  such  con- 
victions as  will  represent  a  noble  present  and  a 
hopeful  future ;  for  you  must  have  a  future  in 
order  to  have  a  present.  Say  what  you  will,  a 
belief  in  immortality  is  necessary  to  a  thoroughly 
developed  and  symmetrical  soul. 

Well,  which  of  the  many  systems  of  religion 
which  prevail  in  different  quarters  of  the  globe 
will  serve  you  best?  Will  you  go  to  Buddhism 
for  this  divine  impulse,  or  to  Confucius,  or  to 
Zoroaster,  or  to  Mohammed,  or  to  Christianity? 
Remember,  we  have  no  prejudices  either  for  or 
against  any  of  these  movements.  We  stand  out- 
side of  them  all,  determined  to  judge  with  abso- 
lute impartiality.  We  look  with  a  critical  eye, 
because  very  important  interests  are  involved  in 
our  decision.     We  have  only  one  rule  to  judge  by. 


BEARING    GOOD    FRUIT.  1 37 

and  that  must  be  applied  relentlessly.  The  rule 
is  this :  Whatever  system  of  religious  thought 
produces  the  best  results  is  the  one  for  us  to 
adopt. 

We  shall  not  wait  long  before  reaching  a  con- 
clusion. A  Christian  civilization,  with  all  its  faults, 
is  the  highest  yet  known  ;  a  Christian  public  opin- 
ion is  the  fairest  and  most  just;  a  Christian  man- 
hood is  closest  to  the  ideal.  These  facts  are  in- 
disputable. 

Throw  your  mere  creeds  to  the  winds,  for  they 
are  a  snare  and  they  produce  confusion.  They 
have  done  more  harm  than  good.  You  have  no 
use  for  them,  and  they  are  only  an  impediment. 
But  take  the  words  of  the  Teacher,  and  incorpor- 
ate them  into  your  life.  Begin  with  that  love  for 
your  kind  which  makes  every  sufferer  your  neigh- 
bor; convince  yourself  that  there  is  a  meaning  in 
all  the  events  of  life  and  that  a  kindly  Providence 
would  overrule  them  for  your  good  ;  look  forward 
to  a  life  beyond,  in  which  lo\'ed  ones  will  meet. 
These  truths  are  all  you  need.  They  will  make 
you  a  good  father,  citizen,  patriot,  friend,  and 
man.  A  life  based  on  them  will  be  the  best  life 
that  the  human  mind  can  conceive. 


138  HERALD    SERMONS. 

Christianity  rests  solely  on  the  fact  that  it  can 
do  more  for  us  and  make  more  of  us  than  any 
other  religion  known  to  man.  There  is  no  mys- 
tery in  it.  It  helps  us  to  live  honestly  and  to  die 
bravely,  therefore  we  defend  and  support  it. 


THE    DISCIPLINE    OE    LIEE. 

"  Before  I  was  afflicted  I  went  astray  :  but  now  have  I  keptTliy 
word." — Ps.  cxix.  67. 

Why  we  are  so  constituted  that  nobility  of  ciiar- 
acter  can  only  be  attained  throug'h  the  discipline 
of  sorrow  is  as  yet  an  unsolved  problem. 

That  we  must  needs  travel  o\er  the  corduroy 
road  of  difficulty,  successive  obstacles,  harsh  cir- 
cumstance, and  continuous  effort  if  we  would  reach 
the  gate  of  Paradise  or  fit  oursehes  to  cross  its 
threshold  is  the  moral  puzzle  of  the  universe. 

In  our  unwisdom  we  think  the  macadamized 
and  level  highway  a  better  means  of  progress,  and 
are  astounded  when  told  that  smooth  roads  make 
small  men. 

He  who  would  get  a  glimpse  of  the  widest 
landscape  must  climb  the  hill  from  which  alone  it 
can  be  seen  That  is  the  first  law  in  the  statute- 
book  of  Providence. 

The  night  is  gruesome  and  lonely,  but  half  the 
139 


I40  HERALD    SERMONS. 

universe  is  veiled  from  him  who  has  not  seen  the 
stars  as  well  as  the  sun,  and  darkness  alone  can 
render  them  visible. 

This,  too,  is  the  law,  namely,  that  you  must 
sit  amid  the  shadows  of  night  if  you  would  see  the 
heavens  at  their  best. 

You  cannot  get  music  from  the  cello  with  loose 
strings.  They  must  be  stretched  ;  and  if  they  could 
they  would  cry  out  with  pain,  but  the  stretching 
until  concert-pitch  is  reached  is  what  gives  the 
musician  an  instrument  worthy  of  his  skill. 

A  large  fortune  is  the  worst  accident  that  can 
befall  a  youth,  for  his  temptations  are  stronger 
than  his  ambitions.  The  boy  with  money  inher- 
ited from  his  father,  and,  therefore,  with  nothing 
to  work  for,  is  already  half  conquered  by  evil  pas- 
sions. The  youth  with  a  high  heart  and  whole- 
some poverty  receives  his  inheritance  from  God, 
and  God's  gifts  are  better  than  man's. 

God's  denials  are  the  best  part  of  His  provi- 
dence. He  gives  nothing  without  its  price,  and 
that  price  is  toil.  We  find  fault  at  first,  but  later 
on  discover  that  what  is  worth  having  is  worth 
working  for ;  that  work  gives  dignity  to  the  soul 
and  is  the  equivalent  of  education. 


THE    DISCIPLINE    OF    LIFE.  I4I 

That  is  the  secret  of  omniscience  which  we  find 
it  hardest  to  learn. 

The  men  who  hxe  in  marble  and  bronze  because 
they  have  done  us  such  ser\ice  that  we  cannot 
forget  them,  and  would  fain  express  our  gratitude 
by  means  of  the  sculptor's  art,  are  they  who  have 
borne  the  brunt  of  circumstance. 

It  is  also  true  that  personal  sorrows,  as  the  loss 
of  dear  ones,  have  an  uplifting  tendency.  Be- 
reavement forces  the  soul  to  recognize  its  destiny. 
Tears  are  sometimes  telescopes  with  which  other 
worlds  are  viewed.  Aching  hearts  feel  their  help- 
lessness and  then  call  on  God  for  the  comfort  that 
is  not  within  reach.  They  see  visions,  have  reve- 
lations, and  doors  are  opened  the  key  to  which  is 
forged  out  of  some  grief. 

The  ties  of  earth  are  loosened  that  we  may  be 
bound  by  stronger  cords  to  heaven.  The  cruelty 
of  death  imbues  us  with  a  longing  for  immortality. 
The  surgeon  cuts  in  order  to  save  the  body,  and 
when  it  is  all  over  we  bless  the  knife.  God  wounds 
because  a  wounded  soul  needs  sympathy  and  con- 
solation, and  can  only  find  them  in  thoughts  of 
another  life. 

An  artist  had  just  finished  a  splendid  fresco  on 


142  HERALD    SERMONS. 

the  ceiling  of  a  cathedral.  Pleased  with  his  work, 
he  stepped  back  to  note  the  general  effect.  For- 
getful of  the  dizzy  height,  he  was  about  to  take 
one  step  more — the  fatal  step — when  his  quick- 
witted assistant  dashed  a  mass  of  color  on  the  pic- 
ture and  ruined  it.  The  painter  sprang  forward — 
his  life  was  saved. 

In  like  manner,  God's  severest  discipline  is  al- 
ways merciful.  The  only  purpose  is  to  compel  us 
to  see  what  He  wishes  us  to  see,  and  to  see  it  as 
He  sees  it.  If  He  ruins  our  hopes  or  gives  our 
love  a  wrench  or  sends  the  dread  Messenger  to 
our  household,  the  sad  song  we  sing  brings  the 
angels  nearer,  and  from  the  ashes  of  consumed 
desires  springs  a  faith  which  draws  the  curtain 
aside  and  shows  us  a  better  life. 

That  God  chastens  because  He  loves  is  a  hard 
saying,  but  they  who  have  been  chastened  can 
ofttimes  find  in  their  agony  a  treasure  which  hap- 
piness is  too  blind  to  discover. 

The  end  to  be  sought  is  largeness  of  soul,  and 
this — so  strangely  are  we  made — is  to  be  attained, 
not  by  having  our  own  way,  but  by  giving  up  our 
way  and  adopting  God's  way. 


LITTLE    PEOPLE    WHO    LIVE    LITTLE 
LIVES. 

"  When  thou  wast  little  in  thine  own  sight." — I  Sam.  xv.  17, 

If  you  happen  to  be  strollini^  through  the  fields 
in  the  springtime  of  the  }-ear  you  are  more  than 
Hkely  to  run  upon  a  bed  of  wild  violets  at  tht 
foot  of  a  maple-tree  in  some  obscure  corner.  No 
other  eyes  than  yours  have  ever  seen  them,  and 
no  other  eyes,  perhaps,  will  ever  see  them  again, 
for  in  a  few  days  their  little  lives  will  be  ended 
and  they  will  have  withered. 

They  have  their  mission,  nevertheless,  and  who 
shall  say  that  it  is  unimportant?  They  are  fash- 
ioned in  beauty ;  their  slender  stems  bend  with 
grace  to  the  passing  breeze ;  the  conical  leaves 
are  of  an  exquisite  shade  of  green,  and  the  purple 
petals  are  painted  with  a  skill  which  ik^  artist  can 
borrow.  He  who  was  at  the  pains  to  create  them 
was  not  without  a  purpose  in  that  act.  He  had 
a  plan  for  this  wild  violet,  on  which  He  bestowed 

143 


144  HERALD    SERMONS. 

no  perfume,  as  well  as  for  the  honeysuckle,  which 
fills  the  air  with  fragrance.  And  if  it  blossoms 
with  fidelity  and  dies  with  resignation,  as  much 
credit  may  be  accorded  to  it  as  will  be  given  to 
the  imperious  oak  or  the  stately  elm,  which  attracts 
the  attention  of  every  traveler. 

If  you  were  learned  in  the  language  of  flowers 
you  might  kneel  on  the  sod  and  hear  the  com- 
plaint of  some  discontented  violet.  "  I  am  of  no 
consequence,"  it  might  say  in  despair,  '*  and  won- 
der why  I  was  made.  No  one  knows  or  cares  that 
I  am  here.  I  live,  I  die ;  that  is  all  the  story  I 
have  to  relate.  No  one  is  better  for  my  coming 
and  no  one  will  miss  me  when  I  go." 

And  yet  it  is  possible  that  that  bed  of  violets, 
blossoming  and  withering  under  the  maple,  and 
upon  which  you  have  chanced  in  your  aimless 
stroll,  has  set  you  upon  serious  thoughts.  It  is  an 
epitome  of  the  universe,  as  far  beyond  the  reach 
of  your  power  to  make  as  blazing  Arcturus  in  the 
evening  sky.  It  is  a  clue  to  a  thousand  mysteries, 
and  all  unconsciously  to  itself  it  may  lead  you  up 
the  spiral  staircase  of  logic  until  you  lie  reverent 
and  prostrate  in  the  awful  presence  of  Deity. 

The  violet  is   a   type   of   humanity.     We,  too, 


LITTLE  PEOPLE  WHO  LIVE  LITTLE  LIVES.     1 45 

wonder  why  we  are  here.  We  are  so  small,  so 
insignificant ;  we  can  do  so  little ;  we  are  so  slen- 
derly gifted  ;  we  li\e  such  narrow  lives  and  have 
such  meager  influence  that  we  are  overwhelmed 
with  disappointment.  What  does  it  mean  and 
what  does  it  all  amount  to  ?  A  thousand  times  we 
ask  the  question,  and  get  no  answer.  If  we  had 
conspicuous  ability — could  sing  some  song  that 
would  be  remembered,  or  paint  some  picture  that 
would  be  hung  in  the  galleries  of  the  future,  or 
do  some  deed  that  would  leave  our  name  as  a 
heritage — our  lot  would  be  plainly  desirable.  Or 
if,  with  lower  ambition,  we  could  affect  the  lives  of 
those  within  the  circle  of  our  acquaintance — make 
them  think  and  see  more  clearly,  temper  their 
souls  for  nobler  tasks,  contribute  to  their  comfort 
and  happiness  in  some  essential  way — we  should 
feel  that  there  was  a  purpose  in  our  birth  and  an 
object  in  our  lives.  But  to  be  simply  common- 
place— an  odorless  violet  under  a  maple  in  an 
obscure  corner — it  gives  us  a  sinking  at  the  heart, 
and  we  grow  weary  and  despondent. 

How  many  of  us  have  passed  through  this  ex- 
perience and  reached  the  conclusion  that  we  are 
of  no  value !      How  many  of  us  have  thoughtfully 


146  HERALD    SERMONS. 

summed  up  our  lives  and  painfully  declared  to 
ourselves  that  we  count  for  nothing! 

But  such  sighs  are  based  on  a  mistake.  We 
misinterpret  God,  and  are  therefore  led  astray. 
We  have  a  plan  of  our  own,  and  wonder  why  the 
Almighty  does  not  make  His  world  to  conform  to 
it,  instead  of  seeking  His  plan  and  persuading  our 
wills  to  conform  to  that. 

In  the  universe  as  constituted  by  Him  the  hum- 
ble positions  are  vastly  in  the  majority.  We  are 
neither  expected  nor  asked  to  do  much,  but  to  do 
a  little  and  do  it  well.  It  is  not  demanded  of  us 
that  we  shall  stamp  our  characters  on  a  generation, 
since  the  ability  to  do  so  has  not  been  given ;  but 
if  we  keep  our  narrow  house  in  order,  greet  the 
small  duties  of  each  coming  day  with  cheerful- 
ness, throw  a  kindly  word  to  the  passer-by,  drop 
a  penny  into  the  beggar's  hat,  and  maintain  the 
calm  serenity  of  a  contented  heart,  the  evening 
shadows  will  not  fail  to  bring  us  our  reward. 

There  is  but  one  Niagara,  but  on  every  hillside 
is  a  rippling  rill.  As  much  credit  is  due  to  the 
rivulet  that  sings  as  to  the  cataract  that  roars — 
neither  more  nor  less.  Each  was  made  for  a  spe- 
cific purpose,  and  each  must  accomplish  that  pur- 


LITTLE  PEOPLE  WHO  LIVE  LITTLE  LIVES.     I47 

pose.  The  rivulet  has  no  right  to  complain,  the 
cataract  no  right  to  be  proud.  Not  ability,  but 
excellence,  determines  the  measure  of  merit. 

Only  Richard  could  wield  a  sword  six  feet  long, 
but  victory  in  the  battle  did  not  depend  so  much 
on  Richard's  sword  as  on  the  arrows  of  his  brave 
army.  He  could  work  miracles  of  valor  in  single 
combat,  and  loud  huzzas  greeted  his  deeds  of 
prowess,  but  after  all  it  was  the  rank  and  file  of 
stalwart  yeomen  twanging  the  bowstring  who 
drove  the  enemy  from  the  field  and  planted  the 
banner  of  England  there. 

It  is  always  so.  The  obscure  make  history 
when  each  man  does  his  duty,  and  human  prog- 
ress is  more  the  result  of  what  takes  place  in  pri- 
vate life  than  of  what  our  giants  do.  The  world 
consists  of  little  people,  each  of  whom  is  doing  his 
little  work ;  but  the  aggregate  influence  is  an  irre- 
sistible dynamic  force  for  good.  The  best  men 
and  women  are  unknown.  There  is  a  long  list  of 
saints  whose  names  will  not  be  heard  until  the 
Day  of  Judgment — men  who  have  made  a  hard 
fight  with  fate  amid  surroundings  too  lowly  for 
recognition,  and  women  who  have  sacrificed  more 
than  any  one  knows  except  One. 


148  HERALD    SERMONS. 

It  is  not  the  smalliiess  of  your  life,  but  the  qual- 
ity of  it,  that  is  important.  You  cannot  be  an  oak 
or  an  elm,  but  if  you  are  a  violet  under  a  maple, 
drinking  in  the  sunshine  and  the  dew,  you  should 
be  content,  for  in  the  providence  of  God  humble 
lives  cheerfullv  lived  have  infinite  value. 


VITAL   RELIGION— WHAT    IS    IT? 

"  Pure  religion  and  undetiled  before  God  and  the  Father." — 
James  i.  27. 

No  more  succinct  statement  of  what  is  essential 
in  the  formation  of  a  religious  character  was  ever 
made. 

We  are  told  in  simple  language,  which  the  hum- 
blest can  understand,  that  God's  requirements  are 
few ;  that  this  life  can  be  made  worth  living,  and 
the  other  life  anticipated  with  pleasure,  by  obey- 
ing two  injunctions,  namely,  being  helpful  to 
those  who  are  struggling  with  adversity,  and  keep- 
ing our  souls  clean  and  wholesome. 

If  "  pure  religion  and  undefiled,"  embodied  in 
our  daily  actions,  will  insure  the  approval  of  God, 
and  if  it  consists  in  doing  all  the  good  that  lies  in 
our  power  and  in  making  for  ourseh-es  a  record  of 
impregnable  honesty,  then  we  must  agree  that  re- 
ligion is  indispensable,  and  we  can  no  more  afford 

149 


ISO  HERALD    SERMONS. 

to  live  without  it  than  we  can  Hve  without  a  roof 
over  our  heads  or  food  for  our  table. 

If  the  church  will  pardon  us  for  the  criticism, 
we  should  like  to  say  that  it  has  taught  men  to 
look  at  life  from  the  wrong  standpoint.  It  tells 
us  that  we  must  believe  certain  doctrines  before 
we  can  lead  a  certain  kind  of  life.  These  doctrines 
are  of  a  complex  character,  and  sharp  controversy 
arises.  If  we  must  believe  before  we  can  live, 
then  unless  we  believe  we  cannot  live,  and  many 
a  noble  soul  has  lost  its  grip  on  the  higher  life 
because  it  could  not  make  the  doctrine  intelligible 
or  even  reasonable.  That  is  a  misfortune  of  the 
gravest  kind  and  one  to  be  greatly  deplored. 
When  the  church  says  to  a  man,  "  You  must  accept 
this  and  that  dogma,  and  accept  it  with  the  shade 
of  meaning  which  I  ascribe  to  it,"  it  makes  religion 
too  much  of  an  intellectual  process,  while  the  spir- 
itual process  is  lost.  If  a  man  rejects  the  dogma 
he  is  apt  to  think  that  dogma  is  an  essential  ele- 
ment of  religion,  whereas  in  very  truth  it  is  noth- 
ing of  the  kind.  That  mistake  may  prove  to  be 
fatal,  and  his  whole  life  may  be  blighted. 

On  the  other  hand,  when  a  man  is  told  that 
since  this  is  God's  world,  and  he  is  God's  child, 


VITAL    RELIGION — WHAT    IS    IT?  151 

he  must  therefore  seek  the  approval  of  God  by 
being  of  service  to  his  fellows — encouraging  the 
weak,  lifting  up  the  downtrtjdden,  defending  the 
oppressed,  setting  an  example  of  honorable  deal- 
ing which  w  ill  be  attractive  to  others — there  is  no 
room  for  controversy,  and  the  only  debate  possible 
is  as  to  the  best  way  of  accomplishing  these  re- 
sults. He  may  begin  this  work  without  any  dog- 
mas whatever,  may  not  know  that  there  is  such  a 
document  as  a  creed  in  existence,  but  you  cannot 
deny  that  he  is  a  loyal  follower  of  the  Christ.  He 
need  not  hesitate  to  carry  his  pure  motives,  his 
uprightness,  his  self-sacrifice  to  the  foot  of  the 
Throne,  and  need  have  no  fear  that  he  will  not  be 
welcomed  by  angelic  hosts. 

Moreover  he  cannot  long  pursue  such  a  course 
without  becoming,  in  its  best  sense,  a  firm  believer. 
He  may  not  accept  all  of  the  Thirty-nine  Articles, 
but  that  is  of  no  consequence.  He  will  accept 
the  general  principles  on  which  the  earthly  career 
of  Jesus  was  based,  and  the  moral  law  which  He 
proclaimed  in  such  startling  phrases  that  we  can 
hardly  resist  calling  it  a  revelation. 

He  will  not  only  believe  in  a  God  who  rules 
the  world  wisely  and  justly,  and  in  a  Providence 


152  HERALD    SERMONS. 

which  overlooks  the  experiences  which  come  to 
each  one  of  us,  but  will  perforce  reach  the  con- 
clusion that  this  God  has  arranged  affairs  in  a 
fatherly  way. 

When  he  is  seeking  for  an  ideal  life — the  best 
conceivable  life,  the  life  after  which  it  would  be 
perfectly  safe  to  model  his  own — he  will  find  it  in 
the  Christ,  and  the  record  of  it  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment. That  great  example  will  impress  itself  on 
his  mind,  and  his  respect  for  the  Nazarene  will 
grow  to  admiration,  and  his  admiration  will  in- 
crease until  it  becomes  worship. 

Further  than  this,  he  will  see  at  a  glance  that 
there  is  a  right  and  a  wrong  in  the  universe.  He 
does  not  know  how  evil  originated,  neither  does 
he  care.  It  is  sufficient  that  it  exists  and  that  he 
must  avoid  it  if  possible.  It  is  plain  to  him  that 
the  right  enlarges  the  soul  and  makes  it  strong, 
healthy,  and  happy,  while  the  wrong  hampers  his 
action  and  makes  him  cowardly.  It  does  not  take 
long,  then,  to  discover  that  it  is  always  better,  even 
though  it  be  at  great  cost,  to  maintain  the  right 
than  to  surrender  to  the  wrong. 

Once  more,  he  sees  that  no  man  completes  his 
work  in  this  life,  and  as  incompleteness  is  an  anom- 


VITAL    RELIGION — WHAT    IS    IT?  153 

aly  in  a  wisely  governed  world,  he  reaches  the 
conclusion  that  beyond  the  confines  of  the  present 
there  must  be  a  future  ;  that  death  is  only  another 
name  for  change,  and  that  he  has  nothing  to  dread 
when  that  change  comes. 

He  began  by  living  a  good  life,  but  while  living 
it  he  has  gradually  acquired  a  series  of  beliefs 
which  constitute  his  creed.  It  is  not  the  creed  of 
the  church,  but  it  is  quite  sufficient  for  all  his  pur- 
poses. No  church  can  afford  to  reject  him,  for  he 
stands  where  St.  James  stood  when  he  wrote  the 
words  of  our  text,  and  where  Christ  stood  when 
He  preached  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount. 

He  has  in  his  soul  all  the  essentials  of  a  vital 
religion,  is  equipped  to  live,  and  prepared  for  im- 
mortality. 


DO    WHAT   YOU    THINK    IS    RIGHT. 

"  I  know  .  .  .  that  there  is  nothing  unclean  of  itself:  but  to 
him  that  esteemeth  anything  to  l)e  unclean,  to  him  it  is  unclean." 
— Rom.  xiv.   14. 

We  have  here  a  very  broad  and  important  prin- 
ciple of  action.  St.  Paul  applies  the  principle  to 
only  a  few  things,  but  there  is  no  reason  why  we 
may  not  apply  it  to  many  things. 

The  Apostle  says  that  some  men  esteem  one 
day  above  another,  while  others  regard  all  days 
alike.  He  further  says  that  many  regard  certain 
articles  of  food  as  unclean,  while  others  entertain 
a  different  opinion.  Neither  of  these  classes,  he 
declares,  is  justified  in  condemning  the  other  for 
following  their  convictions.  No  one  man  can  be 
the  judge  for  all  the  rest.  Each  must  be  '*  fully 
persuaded  in  his  own  mind,"  and  then  do  what  he 
thinks  is  right.  Paul  carries  his  principle  so  far 
as  to  assert  that  if  a  given  course  is  entirely  inno- 
154 


DO    WHAT    VOU    THINK    IS    RIGHT.  1 55 

cent  in  itself,  still  if  you  think  it  is  wrong  that 
settles  the  matter  for  you,  and  you  commit  a  sin 
in  following  it. 

You  are  to  do  what  you  yourself  think  is  right 
— not  what  other  people  tell  you  is  right. 

You  are  to  exercise  your  own  best  judgment 
when  deciding  what  is  harmful  or  innocent,  and 
God  will  reckon  with  you  on  that  basis. 

If  you  have  been  endowed  with  reasoning  facul- 
ties and  with  a  moral  nature  you  are  by  their  ex- 
ercise to  erect  a  standard  for  yourself  and  to  create 
an  ideal  which  it  shall  be  your  purpose  to  attain. 
When  you  have  made  the  standard  you  are  to  act 
in  accordance  with  it,  and  when  you  have  made 
your  ideal  you  are  to  keep  it  in  view  with  eyes 
that  are  loyal  and  steadfast. 

In  a  single  word,  St.  Paul  would  have  you  be 
yourself,  even  though  you  become  unlike  every- 
body else. 

You  are  not  to  be  as  a  drop  of  water  in  a  bucket 
of  water — undistinguishable  from  the  general 
mass;  but  rather  as  one  grain  of  sand  on  a  sea- 
shore of  sand,  or  as  one  leaden  shot  in  a  bagful 
of  shot — in  close  relations  with  every  other  grain 
of  sand  or  every  other  shot,  but  still  maintaining 


156  HERALD    SERMONS. 

an  individuality  of  your  own  which  cannot  be 
lost  and  with  which  you  refuse  to  part. 

This  is  only  another  way  of  saying  that  in  the 
providence  of  God  there  is  no  such  thing  as  a 
crowd  to  be  treated  as  a  whole,  but  that  He  wishes 
you  to  retain  your  peculiar  personality  under  all 
circumstances,  and  will  attend  to  your  special  needs 
in  a  special  way. 

You  are  to  begin  by  being  your  simple  self; 
you  are  to  continue  by  thinking  for  yourself  and 
hammering  out  convictions  which  are  your  per- 
sonal property  ;  you  are  to  end  by  acting  for  your- 
self. Then  w^ien  you  get  to  heaven  there  will  be 
only  two  questions  for  you  to  answ^er :  Did  you 
have  a  clear  and  distinct  idea  of  what  you  ought 
to  do?  and,  Did  you  do  what  you  thought  you 
ought  to  do? 

Suppose  we  apply  this  rule  to  some  of  the  ordi- 
nary matters  of  daily  life.  There  is  in  the  com- 
munity an  almost  violent  difference  of  opinion  on 
the  subject  of  theaters  and  of  dancing  and  of  rid- 
ing for  pleasure  on  a  Sunday  afternoon. 

Now  it  is  generally  admitted  that  none  of  these 
things  is  wrong  in  itself,  and  yet  a  majority  of  the 
clergy  frowai  w^ith  almost  equal  disfavor  on  them 


DO    AVIIAT    VOU    THINK    IS    RIC.IIT.  1 57 

all.  And  since  the  clergy  are  thoughtful  folk,  and 
make  it  their  business  to  examine  our  pleasures 
from  a  moral  standpoint,  and  are  not  to  be  sus- 
pected of  personal  motives,  their  opinions  should 
have  due  weight.  Not  conclusive  weight ;  because 
they  cannot  stand  in  our  stead  at  the  bar  and 
shield  us  from  the  consequences  of  not  following 
our  own  convictions.  If  they  could  the  affair 
\\  ould  assume  an  entirely  different  aspect.  If  we 
could  feel  that  they  are  authorized  to  tell  us  what 
to  do  and  what  not  to  do ;  if  they  could  simply 
say  to  the  Lord,  "  We  ad\'ised  him  and  he  followed 
our  advice,"  and  so  settle  the  matter  for  us,  we 
should  then  receive  their  warnings  without  hesita- 
tion. But  that  is  not  the  case.  We  stand  for  our- 
selves, and  there  are  no  proxies  in  the  other  world. 
We  therefore  give  their  opinion  the  highest  con- 
sideration when  they  denounce  the  theater,  but 
remember  that  we  ourselves  are  the  court  of  last 
appeal. 

Our  decision,  therefore,  as  to  all  these  pastimes 
must  come  from  the  fact  that  we  are  fully  per- 
suaded in  our  own  minds,  not  by  somebody  else's 
mind.  There  is  not  a  human  being  who  has  been 
endowed  with  ordinary  intelligence  who  does  not 


158  HERALD    SERMONS. 

know  to  an  absolute  certainty  whether  an  evening 
at  the  theater  is  demoraHzing  or  not.  If  he  thinks 
it  a  wrong  to  go,  then  it  is  undoubtedly  a  crime 
to  go.  If  in  his  opinion  eating  flesh  is  sinful,  then 
he  will  surely  be  held  for  a  misdemeanor  if  he 
eats  flesh.  If  he  feels  that  he  must  apologize  for 
going  to  the  theater  or  for  taking  a  ride  on  Sun- 
day or  for  engaging  in  the  dance,  he  is  morally  a 
coward  and  is  guilty  of  an  offense.  No  matter 
how  innocent  any  pleasure  may  be  in  itself,  if  you 
are  ashamed  of  indulging  in  it,  but  still  indulge, 
you  are  accountable  for  the  commission  of  a  sin. 

What  dignity  it  adds  to  human  nature  to  be 
thus  made  the  judge  of  your  own  actions  and  to 
be  weighted  down  with  personal  responsibility  for 
them!  How  much  healthier  and  stronger  and 
freer  and  more  progressive  and  more  wholesome 
society  would  be  if  every  man  had  an  opinion  of 
his  own  and  the  independence  which  conviction 
generates ! 

As  it  is,  half  the  world  does  not  know  why  it 
does  this  or  why  it  refrains  from  doing  that,  and 
can  give  no  good  reason  either  for  its  beliefs  or  its 
doubts.  It  follows  fashion  as  a  flock  of  sheep  fol- 
low the  bell-wether ;  not  only  fashion  in  dress,  even 


DO    WHAT    VOU    THINK    IS    RIGHT.  1 59 

when  it  is  uncomely  and  disfiguring,  but  fashion  in 
creeds  and  in  poHtics  and  in  all  the  other  concerns 
of  life. 

But  St.  Paul  tells  you  to  use  your  brains,  to  use 
your  moral  nature  honestly  and  fearlessly,  and  then 
to  do  what  you  think  is  honorable  and  right.  If 
we  followed  his  advice  the  world  would  be  all  the 
better  for  it. 


YOU    SHALL    HAVE    STRENGTH. 

"  And  as  tliy  days,  so  shall  thy  strength  be." — Deut.  xxxiii.  25. 

Human  nature  is  made  of  very  strange  mate- 
rial. We  are  constantly  surprised  at  our  ability 
to  bear  what  seems  to  be  unendurable.  Under 
the  pressure  of  a  great  incentive  we  can  accom- 
plish miracles,  and  when  necessity  compels  we  can 
endure  anything. 

No  man  is  thoroughly  acquainted  with  himself. 
There  are  depths  and  heights  in  his  soul  which  he 
has  never  explored.  In  one  environment  he  is  a 
commonplace  creature ;  in  another  he  develops 
into  a  hero.  The  possibility  of  greatness  is  hid- 
den somewhere  in  every  man's  nature.  He  is  an 
unconscious  giant,  but  will  never  do  a  giant's  work 
until  the  emergency  forces  him  to.  Give  him  an 
ordinary  road  to  travel,  and  he  shambles  along  like 
a  peasant;  give  him  a  hill  to  climb,  then  thunder 
160 


YOU  SHALL  HAVE  STRENGTH.      l6l 

in  his  ear,  "You  must!"  and  he  becomes  trans- 
formed from  a  clod  to  a  god. 

It  is  the  sternness  of  fate  which  makes  man 
great.  His  incHnation  is  to  be  small,  to  be  com- 
fortable rather  than  noble,  to  live  easily  rather 
than  grandly.  It  is  only  when  a  compelling  force 
on  the  outside  drives  him,  or  when  he  finds  him- 
self in  a  tangle  of  circumstances  from  which  extri- 
cation seems  impossible,  that  he  rises  to  his  full 
height  and  accomplishes  the  task  which  he  has 
looked  upon  with  trembling  timidity.  In  a  word, 
he  is  almost  omnipotent,  but  does  not  know  it, 
and  never  can  know  it  until  God  proves  it  to  him 
by  giving  him  the  impossible  to  do. 

During  the  war  the  farmer's  boy  was  thrilled  by 
a  spark  of  electric  patriotism,  but  great  deeds  were 
beyond  his  thought.  He  had  never  seen  the  he- 
roic element  in  his  nature.  He  enlisted  as  a  duty, 
and  for  months  was  only  an  ordinary  soldier  in  the 
ranks.  By  and  by,  however,  he  faced  a  grave 
danger.  There  was  death  in  the  air.  The  bullets 
were  flying  fast,  and  he  gave  up  all  hope  of  seeing 
home  again.  But  with  danger  came  opportunity. 
That  opportunity  acted  on  him  like  magic.  A 
farmer's   boy   no   longer,   he   suddenly   became  a 


1 62  HERALD    SERMONS. 

hero,  as  though  some  fairy  had  swung  her  wand 
over  his  head.  He  was  larger  in  soul  than  he 
ever  dreamed  of  becoming,  went  into  the  thick  of 
the  fight,  and  unflinchingly  did  deeds  of  prowess. 
When  the  shadows  of  evening  fell  and  the  bloody 
work  was  over  he  had  a  captain's  straps  on  his 
shoulders,  and  was  by  no  means  the  same  man 
who  left  the  plow  in  the  furrow  to  follow  the  tap 
of  the  drum.  Opportunity  is  another  name  for 
metempsychosis,  for  there  are  times  when  we  shed 
the  commonplace  and  become  Knights  of  the 
Round  Table. 

But  we  can  endure  as  well  as  do  when  we  must. 
No  one  knows  how  much  he  can  bear  until  he  is 
tried.  Providence  has  made  life  hard  because 
every  man  needs  the  test  of  fire.  Why  this  is  so 
it  might  be  difficult  to  say,  but  that  it  is  so  no  one 
can  doubt.  We  are  drowsy  until  some  earthquake 
shock  shakes  us,  and  then  we  become  men.  Ill 
fortune  is  spiritually  worth  more  than  what  we 
call  good  fortune.  The  rich  man's  son  is  apt  to 
slide  downhill,  while  the  poor  man's  boy  climbs 
to  the  top.  If  you  have  all  you  want  3^our  life  is 
without  value.  If  you  have  nothing  that  you 
want  the  desire  to  get  the  best  there  is  is  a  trans- 


YOU    SHALL    HAVE    STRENCHH.  1 63 

figuring  influence,  though  it  involves  sacrifice  and 
tragedy. 

You  are  content,  and  your  home  is  a  happy 
one.  Wife  and  child  sit  at  your  winter  fireside, 
and  you  contemplate  your  surroundings  with 
grateful  satisfaction.  The  sky  is  blue  for  you, 
and  the  sun  always  sets  in  beauty.  But  you 
recognize  the  fact  that  there  are  storms  to  be  met, 
and  though  you  have  had  immunity  thus  far  you 
know  that  it  cannot  last  forever.  There  are  bur- 
dens to  be  borne,  and  you  must  fit  your  shoulders 
to  some  of  them. 

When  you  think  of  what  may  possibly  happen 
the  tears  come  to  your  eyes.  Your  income  may 
take  to  itself  wings  and  speed  away,  leaving  you 
to  sit  in  the  ashes  of  bankruptcy.  That  seems 
hard  enough,  yet  you  have  a  feeling  that  you  can 
bear  it  if  it  is  inevitable.  But  when  a  white  hearse 
rumbles  by  your  door  you  know^  that  some  father's 
heart  is  breaking,  and  it  comes  to  you  that  a  like 
disaster  may  visit  you.  Life  is  so  uncertain  and 
Death  is  apparently  so  capricious.  If  he  should 
look  into  the  eyes  of  your  little  one  he  might 
want  him.  Death  plucks  beautiful  flowers  for  the 
garden  of  God,  and  if  he  should  pluck  your  flow- 


1 64  HERALD    SERMONS. 

er — the  only  one  you  have,  mayhap — what  would 
you  do,  what  could  you  do?  You  shudder  and 
grow  pale.  You  fall  upon  prayer  that  no  white 
hearse  may  ever  stop  at  your  door.  Your  life 
would  go  out  like  an  extinguished  candle.  There 
would  be  nothing  left.  That  misfortune  you  can- 
not bear.  Anything  else,  but  not  that,  you  say 
— so  have  said  many,  and  then  they  have  wept 
because  the  prayer  was  not  answered. 

Then  Death  steals  into  your  house  unawares 
and  your  flower  is  gone.  Are  your  shoulders 
broad  enough  for  that  heavy  weight?  You  will 
sink  under  it  and  lie  down  by  the  side  of  the  child 
in  the  same  grave.  No,  not  that ;  because  *'  as 
thy  days,  so  shall  thy  strength  be."  When  the 
time  comes  you  find  larger  endurance  of  soul  than 
you  have  credited  yourself  with,  and  though  the 
future  days  may  be  gray  days,  and  the  sun  never 
shines  in  quite  the  old  way,  you  can  bear  the  sor- 
row; you  do  bear  it  with  a  fortitude  borrowed 
from  the  angels. 

Much  depends  on  your  faith.  No  soul  that 
looks  at  heaven  can  be  crushed  by  anything  that 
happens  on  the  earth.  Once  get  a  glimpse  of  the 
future,  once  see  the  boy  in  the  garments  of  the 


YOU  SHALL  HAVE  STRENGTH.      1 65 

immortals,  and  though  your  heart  breaks  you 
would  not  call  him  back.  It  is  faith  that  lightens 
our  load,  while  doubt  doubles  its  weight.  One 
glance  at  God,  and  fate  can  do  you  no  further 
harm. 


THE    BEST   THING   TO    DO. 

"  And  let  us  consider  one  another  to  provoke  unto  love  and  to 
good  works." — Heb.  x.  24. 

The  man  who  thinks  only  of  himself  and  is 
forgetful  of  his  obligations  to  others  does  not  com  it 
for  much  either  in  this  world  or  the  next. 

A  purely  selfish  man,  who  wants  everything 
and  gives  nothing,  lives  in  the  suburbs  of  purga- 
tory and  will  not  have  far  to  go  when  he  dies. 

To  recognize  your  rights  and  ignore  your  duties 
is  to  pursue  a  policy  which  angels  deplore  and 
devils  rejoice  at. 

God  can  use  a  man  to  the  best  advantage  when 
the  soul  which  is  prone  to  selfishness  evicts  its 
tenant  and  makes  room  for  the  occupancy  of  hea- 
venly visitants. 

The  man  who  seeks  for  this  world's  goods  ex- 
clusively, whose  chief  possession  is  a  bank-account, 
will  find  himself  out  of  place  in  heaven — a  stranger 
in  a  strange  land. 

166 


Tin-:  liEST  Til  IXC  TO  DO.  167 

Money  is  a  good  thing  to  work  for,  but  it  is  not 
the  only  thing,  nor  the  best  thing. 

It  is  not  well  to  despise  money,  but  you  should 
remember  that  while  it  will  purchase  much  that  is 
desirable  it  will  buy  neither  character  nor  happi- 
ness. Unless  you  generously  share  it  with  those 
who  are  unfortunate  it  will  make  you  narrow  and 
mean. 

The  most  pitiful  spectacle  that  eye  ever  looked 
upon  is  the  man  who  has  more  than  he  knows 
what  to  do  with,  but  refuses  to  give  his  surplus  to 
keep  the  wolf  away  from  the  door  across  the 
street. 

The  noblest  men  are  those  who  give,  not  those 
who  keep,  and  there  is  more  satisfaction  in  seeing 
a  poor  man's  children  eat  the  bread  which  you 
have  furnished  than  in  sitting  at  your  own  table 
when  plenty  abounds,  if  you  ignore  the  poor  man's 
children  and  let  them  go  hungry. 

True  religion  is  a  very  simple  matter.  You  can 
get  along  without  a  creed,  but  you  cannot  get 
along  without  doing  good  to  your  fellow-creatures 
who  need  your  help. 

The  world  is  full  of  sorrows  and  struggles. 
Tears   fall  like    showers   and  sighs  fill  the  air  as 


1 68  HERALD    SERMONS. 

when  the  wind  sweeps  through  a  forest  of  pines. 
Those  who  suffer  are  part  of  the  family  to  which 
you  belong.  You  have  no  right  to  be  indifferent. 
To  be  neglectful  is  a  crime.  If  you  can  lend  a 
helping  hand,  but  refuse  to  do  it  on  the  ground 
that  you  wish  to  use  both  hands  for  yourself,  you 
lose  an  opportunity  which  Providence  has  pre- 
sented, and  you  will  have  difficulty  in  explaining 
your  conduct  when  the  hour  of  reckoning  comes. 

Doing  good  to  others  is  the  best  way  to  get  a 
blessing  for  yourself. 

You  will  find  the  strongest  proofs  that  the  reli- 
gion you  believe  in  is  from  God  if  you  will  cease 
studying  the  theology  which  is  in  books  and  de- 
vote an  equal  time  to  God's  poor  in  your  neigh- 
borhood. 

When  a  man  gives  cheer  to  another's  heart  the 
angels  mysteriously  put  cheer  into  his  own. 

It  is  right  and  proper  to  pray,  "  Give  us  this 
day  our  daily  bread,"  but  God  asks  a  price  for  His 
answer,  and  that  price  is  that  you  shall  give  some 
one  else  a  share  of  the  bread  He  gives  to  you. 

If  you  are  suffering  from  an  affliction  what  will 
you  do?  How  shall  you  seek  relief?  By  asking 
God  to  lighten  your  burden  ?     No ;  by  doing  what 


THE    BEST   THING    TO    DO.  1 69 

you  can  to  lighten  the  burden  of  some  equally 
troubled  soul.  If  you  bring  a  smile  to  the  trem- 
bling lips  of  another,  you  will  soon  discover  that  a 
smile  is  alighting  on  your  own  lips,  like  a  butterfly 
on  a  flower. 

Would  you  increase  your  faith?  Would  you 
dissipate  your  doubts  ?  Would  you  convince  your- 
self that  life  is  very  well  worth  living,  even  when 
the  shadows  throw  their  gloom  on  your  path? 
Then  visit  those  who  are  wearily  plodding  along, 
hopeless  and  friendless. 

You  will  find  yourself  stronger  by  forgetting 
yourself  and  saying  a  kindly  word  to  some  poor 
creature  who  would  think  he  was  in  heavenly  sur- 
roundings if  he  lived  under  your  roof  and  enjoyed 
your  advantages. 

When  you  are  in  the  presence  of  the  Lord,  who 
was  Himself  poor  and  oppressed,  and  so  lonely 
that  He  knelt  in  Gethsemane  to  ask  for  help,  you 
will  be  poorly  off  if  you  have  nothing  better  to 
say  than  that  }'ou  accepted  all  the  creeds  of  the 
church  and  kept  yourself  unspotted  from  the 
world.  But  you  will  be  well  off  if  you  can  assure 
Him  that  you  kept  some  one  else  unspotted  from 
the  world  at  great  pains  and  sacrifice. 


I/O  HERALD    SERMONS. 

Love  God,  love  your  neighbor,  obey  the  com- 
mand, "  Feed  My  lambs,"  and  you  will  get  a  warm 
welcome  at  the  end  of  the  journey  after  death. 

It  is  not  w^hat  you  believe,  but  what  you  do, 
that  will  entitle  you  to  a  residence  in  the  New 
Jerusalem. 

You  may  be  worth  a  million,  but  if  you  have 
done  nothing  to  make  the  world  better  you  will 
die  a  beggar. 

You  may  be  counted  among  the  poor,  but  if  you 
have  been  a  brother  to  your  fellow-men  a  group  of 
angels  will  gather  about  your  bed  and  usher  you 
with  songs  into  the  presence  of  Him  who  said, 
"  The  first  shall  be  last,  and  the  last  first." 

No  one  ever  yet  loved  God  acceptably  who  did 
not  love  His  children. 

There  is  no  room  in  the  House  not  built  with 
hands  for  a  soul  that  has  not  made  some  sacrifice 
for  others. 

If  you  love  your  kind  and  manifest  that  love 
by  generous  deeds  it  will  be  but  a  step  from  your 
grave  to  heaven. 


SEARCHING    AFTER    GOD. 

"In  the  beginning,  God." — Gen.  i.   i. 

It  is  a  very  great  convenience,  from  an  intel- 
lectual point  of  \'iew,  to  believe  in  God.  It  is  so 
much  easier  to  account  for  what  is  going  on  in  the 
universe  by  assuming  His  existence  than  it  is  by 
having  only  chance  and  accident  to  deal  with. 

It  is  also  very  comforting,  from  a  spiritual  point 
of  view,  to  feel  sure  that  behind  the  tangle  of  life 
is  One  who  sees  it  all  as  our  blind  eyes  cannot, 
and  who  has  so  arranged  matters  that  even  tangles 
subserve  a  noble  purpose. 

Tears  and  struggles  that  are  the  result  of  acci- 
dent are  bitter  tears  and  terrible  struggles,  but  the 
struggles  which  are  a  preliminary  to  high  achieve- 
ment and  the  tears  which  enable  the  sun  to  paint 
a  rainbow  on  our  sky  are  ennobling. 

A  man  may  weep  and  still  be  glad  if  God's 
providence  is  guiding  his  destiny,  and  a  man  may 

171 


172  HERALD    SERMONS. 

laugh  and  still  be  wretched  if  his  only  religion  is 
a  defiance  of  fate. 

If  it  is  a  convenience  and  a  comfort  to  believe, 
may  we  also  declare  that  our  faith  is  based  on  in- 
vincible reasoning?  Can  we  logically  find  our 
way  from  the  plan  which  is  everywhere  manifest 
to  the  throne  on  which  sits  the  Planner? 

Let  us  ask  science  to  come  to  our  aid.  Some 
years  ago  De  Perthes,  while  exploring  the  excava- 
tions made  by  his  workmen,  came  across  a  few 
pieces  of  flint  that  had  assumed  the  shape  of 
arrow-heads.  After  careful  search  he  found 
more  flint  of  the  same  kind.  His  method  of 
reasoning  was  very  simple.  He  said :  "  These 
are  true  arrow-heads.  It  is  impossible  to  be 
mistaken.  They  did  not  come  to  this  particular 
spot  by  accident,  nor  did  the}'  take  that  special 
shape  by  chance.  It  is  perfectly  safe  to  assert 
that  they  were  at  some  time  in  the  past  ham- 
mered into  arrow-heads  by  a  man  who  went  to 
work  with  that  purpose  in  view."  De  Perthes 
would  have  risked  his  reputation  on  the  truth  of 
that  statement,  and  the  whole  scientific  world  would 
have  declared  that  he  was  justified  in  doing  so. 

The  process   of   reasoning  was   entirely  sound. 


SEARCHING    AFTER    GOD.  1 73 

The  explorer  was  no  more  certain  that  the  sun 
rose  that  morning  than  that  flint  cannot  repeat- 
edly take  the  exact  shape  of  an  arrow-head  unless 
there  is  a  man  behind  the  flint  with  a  hammer  in 
his  hand  and  a  distinct  purpose  in  his  mind. 

May  we  not  be  permitted  to  use  the  same  kind 
of  logic  in  theology,  and  need  we  be  timid  in  de- 
claring that  this  vast  machinery  and  enginery  of 
earth  and  heaven  must  be  the  product  of  infinite 
power  in  which  infinite  wisdom  lies  hidden  ? 
Shall  we  hesitate  to  use  the  word  ''  must  "  in  its 
most  imperative  sense? 

It  is  true  that  we  cannot  know  all  about  God, 
but  is  it  not  also  true  that  we  can  know  some- 
thing about  I  Tim?  We  are  told  of  the  Phrygian 
Tantalus  that  he  stood  waist-deep  in  water,  al- 
ways trying  to  reach  the  fruit  that  was  beyond 
his  grasp ;  and  e\'ery  failure  added  to  his  remorse, 
his  mortification,  and  his  unhappiness.  Reverse 
the  picture,  and  you  see  what  the  Christian  is  do- 
ing. He  is  forever  reaching  up  for  the  secret  of 
God,  but  never  quite  grasps  it ;  and  yet  the 
constant  eff'ort  enlarges  his  soul  and  gives  a  sub- 
lime dignity  to  his  faith  in  both  the  present  and 
the  future. 


174  HERALD    SERMONS. 

The  bird  that  wings  its  way  over  New  York, 
seeking,  by  a  divine  instinct,  the  sunny  south 
when  the  coming  frosts  drive  him  from  the  north- 
ern zone,  may  have  a  very  poor  conception  of 
what  is  meant  by  this  aggregated  population,  and 
may  be  capable  of  knowing  very  little  concerning 
the  intricacies  of  our  government ;  but  if  that  bird 
were  endowed  with  self- consciousness  and  imagi- 
nation a  single  glimpse  would  suffice  to  convince 
it  that  the  city  exists  and  that  something  beyond 
its  ken  is  being  done  by  the  people  who  live  in  it. 

We  cannot  measure  God,  neither  can  we  under- 
stand Him.  He  is  hidden  from  us  by  the  blind- 
ing mists  of  time  and  the  equally  blinding  light  of 
eternity.  And  yet  there  have  been  moments  in 
your  life  when  through  the  mists  the  finger-tips 
of  an  outstretched  hand  have  pressed  your  fore- 
head, and  you  have  been  forced  to  believe  that 
behind  the  finger-tips  was  an  Arm,  and  behind  the 
arm  a  Form,  and  within  the  Form  a  heart  of  love. 
The  man  who  has  never  had  that  experience  and 
never  reasoned  in  this  way  must  be  a  strange  sort 
of  creature.  We  have  repeated  to  ourselves  the 
words,  "  Mine  heart  suspects  more  than  mine  eye 
can  see,"  and  felt  secure  in  our  faith. 


SEARCHING    AFTER    GOD.  1 75 

Your  search  for  God  is  like  the  ascent  of  Mont 
Blanc.  Your  weary  feet  plod  along  the  narrow 
path,  and  you  vainly  hope  to  greet  the  rising 
sun  from  the  ice-field  that  is  above  the  clouds. 
The  shadows  of  evening  fall,  darkness  settles  on 
the  earth,  and  with  your  utmost  effort  you  have 
only  reached  the  little  inn  half-way  to  the  sum- 
mit. As  you  stand  in  the  doorway  and  see  the 
last  violet  rays  reflected  on  the  mirror  of  ice  up 
yonder,  are  you  disappointed  because  you  have 
not  accomplished  all  you  hoped  for  ?  Can  you 
say  you  know  nothing  of  Mont  Blanc?  The 
struggle  has  given  you  an  additional  self-respect 
and  filled  you  with  a  larger  admiration  of  that 
royal  peak. 

In  like  manner  the  mysteries  of  God  stretch  far 
away  to  the  stars.  You  would  know  much,  and 
find  that  you  can  know  but  little.  You  climb, 
the  unseen  Hand  in  the  mists  guiding  your  falter- 
ing footsteps,  and  when  the  shadows  deepen  and 
your  life  has  come  to  its  close  you  humbly  de- 
clare that  the  secret  is  beyond  your  reach,  l^ut 
you  believe,  for  you  have  felt  the  finger-tips  of 
His  hand,  and  the  effort  to  know  Him  has  made 
you  know  yourself. 


176  HERALD    SERMONS. 

There  is  time  enough  in  which  to  continue  the 
search,  for  beyond  the  grave  your  opportunities 
will  be  greater  and  your  faith  will  change  to  sight. 
After  the  night  cometh  the  morning,  and  then  we 
shall  know  more. 


WHEN    WE    COME    AND    WHEN 
WE    GO. 

"  For  we  brought  nothing  into  this  world,  and  it  is  certain  we 
can  carry  nothing  out." — I  Tim.  vi.  7. 

If  this  statement  concerning  the  two  "noth- 
ings," one  at  the  cradle  and  the  other  at  the 
gra\e,  were  isolated  from  the  context  we  should 
boldly  assert  that  St.  Paul  was  mistaken.  It  is 
entirely  clear  that  we  bring  a  great  deal  into  this 
world  and  that  we  carry  a  great  deal  out  of  it. 
Unless  we  bring  something  we  have  no  tools  with 
which  to  accomplish  the  task  that  the  Almighty 
has  set  us;  unless  we  take  something  with  us  it 
would  be  manifestly  unfair  either  to  reward  or 
condemn,  for  the  condemnation  and  the  reward 
must  depend  on  what  we  have  in  our  possession 
when  we  stand  at  the  bar  of  judgment. 

St.  l^aul,  however,  explains  himself  when  he  re- 
fers with  great  severity  of  rhetoric  to  a  class  of 
people  who  are   under  the  delusion  that  **  gain  is 

177 


178  HERALD    SERMONS. 

godliness,"  and  his  injunction,  "  From  such  with- 
draw thyself,"  is  a  warning  not  to  spend  too  much 
time  in  gathering  what  you  must  leave  behind, 
and  too  little  in  acquiring  -what  you  may  take 
with  you  when  you  depart. 

In  other  words,  the  object  of  revelation  is  to 
teach  a  man  the  difference  between  the  riches 
which  he  must  leave  to  his  heirs  and  assigns  and 
the  wealth  of  character  which  is  his  inalienable 
possession,  an  integral  part  of  himself  both  here 
and  hereafter. 

Death  makes  every  man  financially  bankrupt. 
The  moment  he  dies  he  becomes  poor.  There  is 
nothing  in  the  Beyond  which  he  can  purchase 
with  cash.  No  shroud,  therefore,  has  a  pocket. 
The  gold  from  no  mine,  the  money  from  no  mint, 
passes  current  in  heaven.  The  angels  carry  no 
purses,  and  the  jingle  of  coin  is  never  heard. 
You  will  not  get  what  you  want  by  paying  for  it, 
neither  will  you  lack  what  you  need  because  you 
have  no  money.  What  you  have  and  what  you 
lack  will  depend  wholly  on  your  deserving. 

It  is  very  interesting,  then,  to  discuss  the  two 
questions.  What  did  we  bring  into  this  world? 
and,  What  can  we  carry  out  of  it?  for  the  answer 


WHEN    WE    COME    AND    WHEN    WE    GO.      1 79 

enables  us  to  formulate  that  policy  of  action  which 
will  produce  the  best  results. 

The  wise  man  will  spend  his  greatest  eflfortg  in 
acquiring  what  he  can  keep,  and  it  is  folly  to  ex- 
haust yourself  in  working  for  what  Death  will  dis- 
dainfully tell  you  cannot  be  transported. 

The  purpose  of  religion  is  to  inspire  you  with 
sound  and  broad  ideas  on  this  subject,  to  restrain 
you  from  wasting  your  efforts  on  matters  of  little 
moment.  Religion  and  common  sense,  therefore, 
or,  to  put  it  still  more  forcibly,  religion  and  the 
highest  philosophy,  are  one  and  the  same  thing. 

First,  we  brought  our  bodies  into  this  world. 
This  is  of  no  special  consequence,  because  we 
need  them  only  while  we  are  here  and  shall  leave 
them  in  the  grave  when  we  go  hence.  The  church 
has  an  odd  theory  that  we  shall  take  them  with 
us,  but  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  this  is  an  error.  It 
is  certainly  a  very  undesirable  thing  to  look  for- 
ward to.  By  the  time  we  get  through  with  them 
they  will  be  pretty  well  worn  out.  The  bod)'  is 
only  the  soul's  raiment,  and  when  we  reach  heaven 
we  shall  need  a  change. 

Second,  we  came  into  this  world  a  bundle  of 
undeveloped  faculties.      A  child  is  a  fagot  of  pos- 


l8o  HERALD    SERMONS. 

sibilities.  Not  what  he  is,  but  what  he  may  be- 
come, gives  him  interest  and  value.  We  do  not 
care  so  much  for  his  environment  as  for  what  he 
will  make  out  of  it.  His  natural  qualities  are  sim- 
ply an  unopened  chest  of  tools,  and  the  experi- 
ences through  which  he  will  pass  are  the  material 
out  of  which  he  is  to  make  something. 

He  may  be  born  in  a  palace  or  he  may  be  born 
in  a  hovel ;  these  are  mere  accidents  or  incidents. 
With  our  false  notions  of  good  and  ill  fortune  we 
exaggerate  the  importance  of  surroundings,  but 
the  eternal  truth  is  that  surroundings  are  of  very 
little  consequence. 

A  daily  laborer  can  make  as  much  out  of  his 
soul  as  his  employer  can  make  out  of  his.  Neither 
riches  nor  poverty  impede  spiritual  progress.  One 
can  be  as  noble  in  two  humble  rooms  as  in  the 
costly  mansion,  for  whether  you  are  in  the  one 
or  the  other  the  same  events  happen  to  you,  and 
they  must  be  controlled  by  the  same  qualities  of 
character. 

Sorrow  is  sorrow  wherever  you  find  it,  and  no 
bank-account  can  purchase  immunity.  A  grave 
is  a  grave,  whether  there  is  a  costly  monument 
above  it  or  only  a  headstone  of  marble.     When 


WHEN    WE    COME    AND    WHEN    WE    GO.      l8l 

you  reckon  with  actual  experiences  you  discover 
they  are  independent  of  wealth  or  poverty  and 
come  to  all  alike ;  and  when  you  look  at  the  hearts 
of  men  you  find  the  same  measure  of  human  na- 
ture in  them  all. 

Now,  when  we  take  our  departure,  what  shall 
we  carry  with  us  ? 

Death  is  a  terrible  democrat.  When  he  comes 
he  takes  no  note  of  where  or  how  you  have  lived. 
He  ignores  all  class  distinctions  with  a  kind  of 
contempt.  He  does  not  care  whether  your  body 
is  clothed  in  fine  linen  or  in  rags.  He  has  been 
sent  for  your  soul,  your  naked  soul,  pure  or  im- 
pure, and  that  alone  will  he  take  with  him.  He 
strips  your  environment  from  you  as  you  would 
throw  aside  a  tattered  garment.  The  only  thing 
he  will  allow  you  to  carry — absolutely  the  only 
thing — is  your  character. 

When  you  reach  heaven  you  are  what  you  are 
— neither  more  nor  less — and  your  surroundings 
in  this  life  are  of  no  account  whatever.  If  you 
have  done  well  then  you  will  have  reason  to  be 
satisfied  ;  if  you  have  done  ill  you  will  see  that 
you  have  made  a  mistake.  That  is  the  stern  and 
relentless  truth  of  the  case. 


1 82  HERALD    SERMONS. 

When  we  came  into  the  world  we  brought  a 
great  posslbihty.  When  we  leave  it  we  shall  carry 
the  record  of  what  we  have  done,  and  whether 
that  is  to  be  little  or  much  depends  entirely  upon 
ourselves. 


HOW    TO    BEAR    BURDENS. 

"  And  He  bearing  Ilis  cross  went  fortli." — John  xix.  17. 
''  The  heart  knoweth  his  own  bitterness." — I'rov.  xiv.  10. 

A  CROSS  is  part  of  the  household  furniture  of 
every  family.  It  is  the  decree  of  Providence  that 
it  shall  be  so.  It  would  be  very  strange  if  you 
could  find  an  exception  to  the  rule. 

There  are  many  sweets  in  life,  but  there  was 
ne\'er  yet  a  heart  that  had  no  bitterness.  There 
are  pages  in  every  book  which  are  never  read  ex- 
cept by  ourselves  and  One  other.  The  rest  of 
the  volume  is  open  to  our  friends  and  to  the 
world.  God  and  we  have  many  secrets  which  are 
not  confided  to  a  third  party.  He  understands 
us;  no  one  else  can.  That  is  a  peculiarity  of  our 
human  life. 

And  fortunate  it  is  that  the  \'eil  which  covers 
our  hearts  cannot  be  lifted.  If  we  could  see  all 
that  our  neighbors  suffer,  and  they  could  see  what 
we  suffer,  the    revelation  would  be  very  painful, 


1 84  HERALD    SERMONS. 

and  life  would  have  an  added  agony.  We  are 
graciously  permitted,  therefore,  to  have  a  place  of 
concealment  where  we  keep  our  special  disappoint- 
ments and  our  private  griefs,  the  key  to.  which  is 
never  lost  or  mislaid. 

The  true  and  noble  make  the  best  of  life,  and 
refuse  to  increase  another's  sorrow  by  the  recital 
of  their  own.  Small  souls,  like  babbling  brooks, 
tell  everything  as  they  go ;  but  souls  that  see  the 
plan  of  God  tell  all  to  Him  alone  and  find  a  cer- 
tain comfort  in  their  reticence  toward  others. 

The  degree  of  happiness  we  enjoy,  therefore, 
depends  largely  on  ourselves.  Our  environment 
has  less  to  do  with  happiness  than  we  think.  The 
important  question  is  whether  we  have  the  neces- 
sary elements  within  the  heart,  and  if  that  is  de- 
cided in  the  affirmative  it  makes  but  little  differ- 
ence what  our  surroundings  are. 

It  is  hard  to  believe  this,  for  we  are  living  in  an 
age  of  show  and  sham  and  display.  In  the  deca- 
logue of  modern  society  the  first  law  reads,  Thou 
shalt  worship  no  other  god  but  gold.  We  spend 
our  lives  in  a  scramble  for  cash,  and  prove  that  we 
have  succeeded  by  an  exhibition  which  is  little 
less  than  a  personal   advertisement,  and  the   ob- 


HOW    TO    KKAR    BURDENS.  1 85 

ject  of  which  is  to  excite  envy  and  stimulate 
avarice. 

But  we  are  making  a  colossal  blunder.  Happi- 
ness comes  not  from  the  pocket  but  from  the  heart. 
It  cannot  be  created  by  wealth  nor  destroyed  by 
poverty.  Where  love  is  there  is  contentment,  and 
when  love  is  perfect  mere  surroundings  are  re- 
garded with  something  like  disdain.  It  is  when 
the  heart  is  not  satisfied  that  the  nature  of  the 
environment  assumes  undue  importance.  Two 
rooms  will  do,  if  nothing  better  can  be  had,  when 
love  would  build  a  home  ;  but  a  palace  is  too  small 
when  the  heart  is  aching.  A  rag-carpet  on  the  floor 
and  a  single  flower  in  blossom  on  the  window-sill, 
if  contentment  sits  at  your  fireside,  are  better  than 
splendor,  with  distrust  or  suspicion  as  your  guest. 

Here,  then,  you  have  two  facts  which  you  must 
meet : 

First,  there  is  no  life  that  is  not  burdened  with 
a  grief.  It  is  a  hopeless  task  to  search  for  one, 
for  it  will  never  be  found.  This  grief  may  come 
in  any  one  of  a  thousand  shapes,  but  in  some  shape 
it  comes  to  all  of  us.  Its  mission  is  to  teach  us 
that  there  is  One  who  is  wiser  than  we,  and  to 
search  until  we  find  Him. 


1 86  HERALD    SERMONS. 

There  is  nothing  in  all  the  world  that  draws  us 
to  heaven  so  gently  and  yet  so  irresistibly  as  the 
sense  of  helplessness.  Make  life  a  round  of  plea- 
sure, and  the  Lord's  Prayer  would  never  be  uttered. 
But  the  smitten  soul  seeks  shelter,  as  the  frightened 
child  rushes  into  its  mother's  arms.  We  may  not 
understand  why  this  is  so,  but  true  it  is  that  the 
best  elements  of  human  character  have  been  de- 
veloped by  sorrow  rather  than  success. 

Second,  the  happiness  of  life  must  greatly  come 
from  the  way  you  look  at  life.  If  you  jot  down 
the  things  you  want  but  cannot  have  it  is  easy  to 
make  yourself  miserable.  You  can  be  envious 
until  you  become  morbid  and  melancholy.  If  you 
believe  that  in  being  poor  or  afflicted  you  have 
been  robbed  of  your  rights  no  ray  of  sunshine  will 
fall  on  your  pathway. 

A  man  may  look  at  nature  through  smoked 
glass,  and  he  can  use  smoked  glass  when  looking 
at  himself  and  his  surroundings.  Do  but  reckon 
your  blessings  instead  of  your  miseries,  and  you 
halve  the  weight  you  carry.  Form  the  habit  of 
looking  for  a  silver  lining  to  every  cloud,  and  the 
cloud  itself  will   seem   less   dark.     Some  can  be 


HOW    TO    BEAR    BURDENS.  1 87 

happy  with  a  farthing  candle,  while  others  mourn 
under  the  glare  of  an  electric  light. 

And  religion  comforts  and  consoles  because  it 
furnishes  a  cheerful  view  of  every  change  that 
comes.  There  is  no  hard-fisted  and  relentless 
Fate,  but  a  Father  in  the  upper  air.  It  is  not 
chance  that  robs  us  of  the  loved  one,  but  Provi- 
dence, which  does  what  is  best  whether  we  will  or 
no.  Slender  means  are  not  the  synonym  of  mis- 
ery, for  this  world's  goods  are  not  to  be  compared 
with  the  other  world's  goods.  You  may  have  the 
earth  and  yet  have  nothing;  but  if  you  have 
heaven  you  have  everything,  and  no  man  can  take 
it  away. 

Therefore  recognize  the  fact  that  you  are  to 
have  disappointments  and  sorrows,  but  make  the 
best  of  them,  and  speak  of  them  only  to  your  best 
Friend. 

Believe  that  there  is  light  even  in  darkness,  and 
look  for  it  until  you  find  it.  Make  your  life  great 
and  noble  by  making  your  soul  noble  and  great. 
Then  you  will  be  glad  that  you  have  lived,  and 
many  will  be  sorry  when  you  go. 


ONE    FOLD    AND    ONE    SHEPHERD. 

"  And  other  sheep  I  have,  which  are  not  of  this  fold." — John 
X.  i6. 

Denominational  pride  is  another  name  for 
religious  weakness,  and  is  proof  of  a  small  nature. 
A  broad  and  generous  man  is  in  sympathy  with 
all  the  sects  of  Christendom,  and  would  not  im- 
pose the  form  of  worship  which  he  personally  pre- 
fers on  any  one,  but  insists  that  each  man  shall 
believe  what  he  pleases,  provided  it  results  in  an 
honest  life. 

God  will  never  ask  what  special  religious  body 
you  belonged  to,  but  whether  your  faith  made 
you  a  good  citizen,  a  good  father,  a  good  friend, 
and  a  good  man.  There  are  no  sectarians  in 
heaven;  they  are  all  lovers  of  the  noble  and  the 
true  in  every  clime  and  in  every  system  of  religion 
known  to  struggling  humanity.  A  Methodist  or 
an  Episcopalian  or  a  Baptist  angel  cannot  be  found 
in  the  New  Jerusalem. 

1 88 


ONE  FOLD  AND  ONE  SHEPHERD.     1 89 

The  various  sects  which  are  scattered  o\'er  the 
earth  are  simply  so  many  ladders  by  which  the 
people  climb  to  the  upper  regions.  The  foot  of 
each  ladder  is  on  the  ground,  while  the  other  end 
rests  firmly  against  the  Throne.  When  we  die  we 
shall  leave  the  ladders  behind,  because  they  will 
have  achieved  their  purpose  and  we  can  have  no 
further  use  for  them. 

The  path  by  which  you  reach  the  top  of  a 
mountain  is  of  no  consequence  whatever,  and  if 
your  neighbor  chooses  to  get  there  in  some  other 
way  you  are  very  ungracious  if  you  denounce  him 
for  exercising  his  own  judgment  instead  of  follow- 
ing yours.  His  brains  belong  to  him  and  your 
brains  belong  to  you.  You  may  do  as  you  please 
and  he  may  do  as  he  pleases.  ^  If  his  eyes  are 
fixed  on  the  summit,  and  he  is  doing  what  he  can 
to  attain  it,  God  will  certainly  regard  him  with 
favor,  and  you  should  do  no  less.  The  bigot  can 
see  only  one  way,  and  that  is  his  own  way.  He 
lacks  a  very  important  element  of  character  be- 
cause he  is  not  large  enough  to  understand  that 
different  temperaments  require  different  incentives, 
and  that  what  is  good  for  one  may  possibly  be 
bad  for  another. 


IQO  HERALD    SERMONS. 

There  is  altogether  too  Httle  charity  in  the  world 
for  those  who  do  not  find  it  easy  to  see  things  just 
as  we  see  them.  There  are  a  thousand  ways  to 
do  pretty  nearly  everything  that  is  worth  doing, 
and  one  way  is  as  good  as  another.  To  call  this 
man  a  heretic  because  he  has  his  individual  method 
of  solving  the  puzzle  of  life,  and  that  man  ortho- 
dox because  he  happens  to  think  as  you  do,  is 
both  unwise  and  unchristian. 

If  you  have  a  well-developed  soul  you  can  wor- 
ship in  any  church  that  was  ever  built,  or  you  can 
worship  without  any  church  at  all.  He  is  a  poor 
kind  of  creature  who  is  so  prejudiced  that  he  cannot 
find  words  with  which  to  tell  the  Lord  how  grate- 
ful he  is,  whether  he  sits  in  a  Quaker  meeting- 
house or  a  Catholic  cathedral. 

It  is  not  the  building,  but  the  idea  which  it  rep- 
resents, that  is  important.  It  is  of  no  consequence 
whatever  that  the  clergyman  wears  a  surplice  or 
does  not  wear  one ;  that  the  service  is  character- 
ized by  pomp  and  ceremony  or  conducted  without 
these  auxiliaries ;  that  the  edifice  is  the  exponent 
of  ecclesiastical  architecture  or  only  a  barn  in  the 
backwoods.  If  you  get  the  idea  you  get  all  you 
need  and  all  you  can  ask  for.      If  you  are  smitten 


ONE    FOLD    AND    ONE    SHEPHERD.  I9I 

with  remorse  because  your  record  has  blots  and 
smutches  on  it  the  mere  robes  of  the  priest  who 
thus  smites  you  will  count  for  nothing;  and  if  you 
resolve  to  lead  a  life  of  integrity  the  preacher  has 
accomplished  the  task  which  the  Lord  Almighty 
gave  him,  whether  he  is  a  Methodist  or  a  Baptist. 

The  object  of  the  church  is  not  to  make  a  man 
a  sectarian,  but  to  make  him  loyal  to  the  truth. 
At  least  that  should  be  its  object,  and  if  it  achieves 
that  object,  the  fact  that  it  belongs  to  this  or  that 
or  the  other  denomination  is  not  worth  a  second 
thought. 

You  should  believe  in  something,  and  that  some- 
thing should  furnish  you  with  noble  impulses,  with 
charity  for  your  fellow-men,  with  pity  for  the  un- 
fortunate, and  with  a  desire  to  do  all  that  lies  in 
your  power  to  make  this  old  world  better  because 
you  have  lived  in  it.  That  much  of  a  creed  is 
absolutely  necessary,  and  when  you  have  that 
much  you  want  no  more.  It  will  give  you  work 
enough  to  keep  you  busy  until  Death  knocks  at 
the  door  and  sends  you  word  that  you  are  wanted 
somewhere. 

A  few  convictions  hammered  out  of  your  own 
sense  of  dependence,  and  the  consciousness  of  your 


192  HERALD    SERMONS. 

daily  need  to  be  watched  over  and  guided  by  the 
invisible  beings  who  "  walk  the  earth  both  when 
we  wake  and  when  we  sleep,"  will  serve  you  bet- 
ter than  all  the  theology  that  was  ever  printed  in 
books. 

If  you  think  that  one  sect  serves  your  purpose 
better  than  any  other,  join  it  by  all  means ;  but  be 
careful  that  you  do  not  worship  the  ladder  up  which 
you  climb  instead  of  the  heaven  against  which  the 
upper  end  of  tlie  ladder  rests.  And,  above  all, 
don't  criticize  your  neighbor  because  he  is  made 
of  different  stuff  and  chooses  to  get  to  heaven  in 
some  other  way.  If  that  neighbor  is  an  honorable 
man  and  is  doing  the  best  his  circumstances  allow, 
give  him  your  good  wishes  even  if  he  goes  to  some 
other  church  than  your  own.  And  if  he  prefers 
to  say  his  prayers  at  home  or  in  the  woods  or  in 
any  of  the  other  temples  of  God,  still  give  him  a 
helping  hand  and  do  not  insult  him  because  he 
cannot  think  as  you  do,  or  insult  the  Almighty 
because  He  made  that  man  to  do  just  as  he  is 
doing. 

You  cannot  prescribe  a  diet  that  shall  be  equally 
beneficial  to  all.  When  you  spread  your  banquet 
allow  each  guest  to  take  what  suits  him.     That  is 


ONE  FOLD  AND  ONE  SHEPHERD.     I93 

the  only  true  hospitality.  If  a  man  has  any  reli- 
gion at  all  do  not  ask  him  what  kind  it  is  and  sneer 
at  him  because  it  is  not  your  kind,  but  be  grateful 
because  he  and  you  are  trying  to  get  to  the  same 
place,  though  he  takes  one  road  and  you  another. 


FALSE    IDEAS    OF    SALVATION. 

"  He  that  findeth  his  life,  shall  lose  it:   and  he  that  loseth  his 
life  for  My  sake  shall  find  it."— Matt.  x.  39. 

It  is  very  tiresome  to  be  constantly  told  that 
the  chief  purpose  in  life  is  to  save  your  soul. 

There  is  a  kind  of  subtle  and  poisonous  selfish- 
ness in  having  reference  to  your  own  salvation  in 
everything  you  do. 

There  can  be  as  much  selfishness  in  spiritual 
concerns  as  in  worldly  matters,  and  it  is  equally 
bad  in  both. 

The  religion  which  teaches  you  to  save  others 
is  a  great  deal  better  than  the  religion  which 
prompts  you  to  save  yourself. 

If  you  do  your  duty  you  can  trust  your  salva- 
tion to  God  and  not  give  a  thought  to  it. 

The  largest  and  broadest  question  for  you  to 
consider  is  not  whether  you  will  be  all  right  in  the 
future,  but  whether  other  people  will  be  all  right. 

If  you  concern  yourself  with  lending  a  helping 
194 


FALSE    IDEAS    OF    SALVATION.  1 95 

hand  to  all  who  are  in  trouble,  you  need  not  waste 
any  time  in  wondering  what  will  become  of  you 
after  the  judgment-day. 

The  man  who  on  that  occasion  can  honestly 
say,  '*  Lord,  I  was  too  busy  in  saving  others  to 
think  much  about  my  own  soul,"  will  find  himself 
in  the  best  possible  frame  of  mind  to  enjoy  the 
peculiar  pleasures  of  Paradise. 

A  person  may  be  just  as  mean  in  the  use  he 
makes  of  religion  as  another  person  is  in  his  use 
of  the  opportunities  of  financial  success,  and  mean- 
ness is  simply  meanness,  and  therefore  contemp- 
tible, in  whatever  department  of  life  it  makes  itself 
manifest. 

Here,  for  example,  is  an  avaricious  creature  who 
is  planning  and  plotting  to  get  all  the  dollars  that 
are  within  reach  into  his  own  pocket.  He  is  not 
particular  about  the  means  he  employs,  if  only  his 
bank-account  grows  bigger  and  he  is  able  to  sur- 
round himself  with  all  the  comforts  and  luxuries 
which  money  can  buy. 

He  contemplates  the  result  of  his  labors  with 
serene  satisfaction  and  never  gives  either  eye  or 
ear  to  the  misery  which  fills  the  world  so  full. 
He  has  enough  to  eat,  and  it  matters  little  whether 


196  HERALD    SERMONS. 

others  starve  or  not.  He  has  a  surpkis  which  he 
does  not  need,  but  he  never  dreams  of  parting 
with  it  to  charity  or  education.  He  Hves  in  the 
attitude  of  grasping,  and  his  sleep  is  not  disturbed 
by  the  moans  of  wretchedness,  the  sighs  of  despair, 
or  the  sobbing  of  bereavement.  He  has  saved 
himself,  so  far  as  this  world  is  concerned,  and  as 
for  the  rest  of  mankind  they  may  sink  or  swim  for 
aught  he  cares. 

We  see  these  statements  illustrated  on  every 
hand.  The  money  of  trade  flows  in  some  direc- 
tions in  wide  and  deep  channels,  and  does  not  flow 
in  other  directions  at  all.  The  rich  are  reservoirs 
holding  more  than  they  can  use,  but  it  seldom 
happens  that  they  lay  a  conduit  from  their  reser- 
voir to  some  college  or  charitable  institution,  to 
supply  it  with  whatever  will  make  it  effective. 
The  tendency  of  human  nature  is  to  keep  what  it 
has,  even  when  it  has  more  than  it  needs,  and  to 
become  indifferent  to  any  moral  obligation  to  as- 
sist the  poor  and  unfortunate. 

The  pulpit  denounces  that  kind  of  selfishness  as 
beneath  the  dignity  of  manliness  and  honor,  and 
is  quite  right  in  its  criticisms.  But  we  are  inclined 
to  think  that  religion  may  be  as  much  a  perversion 


FALSE  IDEAS  OF  SALVATION.      1 97 

as  avarice.  If  it  teaches  you  to  pray  for  yourself 
instead  of  working  for  others ;  if  you  are  indiffer- 
ent to  the  wrongs  from  which  mankind  suffer;  if 
you  have  never  spent  your  time  and  energy  to 
reclaim  some  one  who  has  strayed  in  forbidden 
paths,  you  may  possibly  have  a  religion  that  is 
better  than  nothing,  but  you  have  not  the  kind 
of  religion  which  Christ  came  to  reveal. 

No  soul  will  be  saved  in  the  future  world  which 
has  not  tried  to  save  some  other  soul  besides  itself 
in  this  world. 

If  the  rich  man  who  spends  his  money  on  him- 
self is  deserving  of  censure,  so  also  is  the  religious 
man  who  hopes  to  get  to  heaven  whether  other 
people  get  there  or  not. 

Do  not  fret  about  your  personal  salvation.  Put 
the  matter  out  of  your  mind  as  of  no  particular 
consequence.  You  will  go  where  you  belong. 
Nothing  can  interfere  with  that  law  of  spiritual 
gra\-itation.  It  will  be  utterly  impossible  for  you 
to  get  into  the  wrong  place,  for  your  deserts  will 
either  lift  you  up  by  their  buoyancy  or  sink  you 
down  by  their  weight.  If  you  have  heavenly  qual- 
ities of  character  you  will  assuredly  go  to  heaven, 
and  if  you  have  not  you  will  never  get  there. 


198  HERALD    SERMOXS. 

What  you  are  to  seek,  therefore,  is  the  qualities 
of  character  and  not  your  salvation.  Do  what  is 
right  by  yourself;  do  what  is  right  for  others;  live 
honorably  anci  help  your  neighbors  to  live  in  the 
same  way  ;  smite  evil  and  encourage  truth ;  be  the 
chivalrous  friend  of  the  defenseless  and  oppressed  ; 
give  according  to  your  means  to  those  who  have 
been  overtaken  by  ill  fortune ;  leave  behind  you 
a  record  of  integrity  and  uprightness,  and  when 
you  begin  your  flight  into  the  future  you  will  take 
as  straight  a  path  to  the  throne  of  God  as  the 
homing  pigeon  does  to  its  distant  cote. 

When  you  pray,  pray  for  the  ability  and  the 
opportunity  to  be  of  service  to  your  fellow-man, 
for  in  that  way  alone  can  you  become  truly  great. 

The  man  on  a  wreck  who  swims  ashore  on  the 
sly  and  leaves  his  comrades  in  the  lurch  is  a  very 
cowardly  sort  of  fellow,  and  the  man  who  embraces 
religion  because  it  will  help  him  to  get  away  from 
eternal  fire,  and  who  does  not  care  whether  others 
burn  or  not,  has  a  very  slender  chance  of  winning 
the  approval  of  Him  who  is  Father  to  all  His  chil- 
dren alike.  But  if  you  can  say,  "  I  loved  others," 
He  will  surely  say  in  reply,  **  Therefore  I  love 
you." 


AN    AGE    OF    RELIGIOUS    INQUIRY. 

"  But  the  greatest  of  these  is  charity." — i  Cor.  xiii.  13. 

The  future  historian,  now  in  his  swaddHng- 
clothes,  will  find  himself  very  much  interested  in 
this  last  half  of  the  nineteenth  century  and  pro- 
nounce it  unique  in  many  important  particulars. 

In  the  matter  of  material  development  it  is  a 
marvel,  and  in  the  matter  of  spiritual  research  it 
holds  a  position  of  unrivaled  excellence. 

The  laws  of  nature  have  been  lassoed,  tamed, 
and  broken  to  harness.  Th'e  resources  of  steam, 
which  our  grandfathers  explored,  which  made  them 
feel  that  they  had  stumbled  on  a  series  of  miracles, 
and  which  changed  the  complexion  of  the  world's 
commerce,  forcing  our  white-winged  fleet  of  sail- 
ing-vessels to  come  to  anchor  and  give  way  to  the 
magician  who  hid  himself  in  the  bunker  of  anthra- 
cite coal — these  resources  are  well-nigh  exhausted. 
The  winds  as  a  propelling  power  have  become  ob- 

199 


200  HERALD    SERMONS. 

solete,  have  taken  their  place  among  the  genii,  the 
myths,  the  superstitions  of  the  past.  Steam  is 
striking  its  tents  and  will  soon  fall  into  innocuous 
desuetude.  Our  needs  have  grown  so  pressing 
that  it  can  no  longer  supply  them.  During  the 
next  fifty  years  it  will  become  a  reminiscence. 
The  electric  spark  is  to  be  the  working  energy  of 
the  twentieth  century.  It  has  just  crossed  our 
threshold  with  letters  of  introduction  from  stu- 
dents of  scientific  prestidigitation,  and  we  have 
only  had  time  to  look  at  its  face  and  its  stature 
and  to  note  its  aggressive  bearing;  but  it  would 
not  be  strange  if  it  were  to  achieve  wonders  which 
our  children's  children  will  regard  with  awe  and 
admiration. 

The  world  is  not  loitering;  it  is  taking  long 
strides.  One  wishes  to  live  while  these  strange 
things  are  happening,  for  to  die  just  now  is  like 
leaving  the  theater  when  the  play  is  half  finished. 

But  no  less  marvelous  are  the  spiritual  signs  of 
the  times.  It  might  be  safely  asserted  that  there 
never  was  an  age  of  such  religious  fervor  as  this. 
We  are  not  optimists,  but  impartial  critics,  when 
we  say  that  the  average  man  is  more  interested  in 
finding:  out  whether  or  no  he  has  a  soul,  and,  if  so, 


AN    AGE    OF    RELIGIOUS    INQUIRY.  20I 

what  is  to  become  of  it,  than  ever  before.  The 
largest  hall  in  New  York  can  be  readily  filled  if 
the  subject  discussed  is  the  certainty  of  two  worlds 
and  the  possibility  of  communication  between  them. 
The  observer  of  current  opinion  is  amazed  at  the 
attractive  quality  of  these  and  similar  topics,  and  is 
forced  to  the  conclusion  that  the  general  appetite 
for  information  concerning  the  future  has  become 
almost  abnormally  whetted.  In  some  respects  it 
is  the  most  devout  and  the  most  reverently  inquisi- 
tive age  of  which  history  bears  record.  Skepticism 
veils  its  face  because  it  is  impotent ;  ridicule  sneers 
in  private,  but  seldom  openly  ;  sarcasm  has  discov- 
ered that  the  edge  of  its  sword  is  dulled.  Right 
or  wrong,  pleased  with  fables  or  not,  this  teased 
and  fretted  world  is  looking  anxiously  for  some 
light  which  the  pulpits  of  Christendom  do  not  as 
yet  furnish.  The  greed  for  facts  concerning  to- 
morrow, and  the  solicitude  with  which  men  and 
women  watch  for  them,  are  so  pathetic  that  they 
are  almost  tragic. 

Accompanying  this  new  phase  of  life  is  an  in- 
difference to  theology  and  to  conventional  wor- 
ship. Preachers  are  not  apparently  aware  of  the 
changes  that  are  taking  place  in  the  public  mind. 


202  HERALD    SERMONS. 

They  wonder  why  their  pews  are  not  filled,  and 
attribute  it  to  the  indifference  of  the  people  to 
spiritual  things.  But  when  two  tables  are  spread, 
one  with  food  that  satisfies,  the  other  with  food 
that  fails  to  do  so,  it  is  not  surprising  that  the 
hungry  go  where  they  can  get  what  they  want; 
and  it  is  mere  blindness  for  the  preacher  to  declare 
that  no  one  is  hungry  because  no  one  asks  for  the 
food  he  provides.  There  is  no  love  of  theology, 
no  reverence  for  creeds,  in  this  generation,  but 
there  is  a  longing  for  information  on  the  subjects 
indicated.  And  if  the  clergyman  insists  on  theo- 
logical discussion  he  simply  imperils  his  usefulness. 
The*  new  thought  is  not  always  wise,  and  fre- 
quently it  is  marked  by  recklessness  and  a  want  of 
common  sense.  What  is  called  spiritualism  and 
theosophy  and  Christian  science  and  a  score  of 
other  names  is  simply  a  cry  for  help.  We  may 
not  accept  any  one  of  the  theories  which  are  advo- 
cated, we  may  find  fault  with  them  all  as  being 
partly  alluring  and  partly  hideous — that  is  a  matter 
of  small  consequence.  Watch  the  patient  crowds 
that  attend  meetings  where  such  subjects  are 
treated  and  you  will  soon  discover  that  a  great 
religious  revolution  is  in  silent  progress.  That 
fact  is  one  to  which  a  thoughtful  man  must  give 


AN    AGE    OF    RELIGIOUS    INQUIRY.  203 

his  attention,  for  it  constitutes  a  sign  of  the  times 
which  no  critic  can  afford  to  ignore. 

It  is  not  prudent  to  be  overhasty  in  judgment. 
The  wise  man  has  no  prejudices.  What  he  thinks 
is  wrong  may  turn  out  to  be  right,  and  charity 
will  save  him  many  a  pang.  This  is  a  large  world, 
and  its  mysteries  are  as  yet  unsolved.  You  have 
no  right  to  say,  "  Believe  as  I  do."  That  is  tyr- 
anny and  folly.  There  are  other  brains  besides 
yours,  and  probably  as  good  as  yours. 

If  men  are  searching  for  truth  in  any  direction 
encourage  them.  To  have  a  desire  to  know  the 
truth  is  itself  elevating  and  ennobling,  and  if  they 
have  taken  the  wrong  road  they  will  find  it  out 
and  return.  If  crowds  like  to  hear  a  discourse  on 
the  destiny  of  the  soul  let  them  gather  in  what- 
ever numbers  they  please.  Ring  the  bells  for 
them,  even  though  you  do  not  go  yourself.  Call 
it  theosophy  or  what  not — who  cares  if  men  are 
helped  by  it?  Don't  drink  unless  you  are  thirsty; 
but  it  is  not  necessary  to  grumble  at  others  who 
are  thirsty  and  therefore  drink.  Go  your  way 
with  your  own  thoughts,  but  do  not  forget  that 
your  neighbor  has  the  same  right  to  go  his  way 
with  his  thoughts. 

But  the  greatest  of  these  is  charity. 


SCIENCE    AND    THE    SOUL. 

"  Our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  who  hath  abolished  death,  and  hath 
brought  life  and  immortality  to  light  through  the  gospel." — 
2  Tim.  i.  lo. 

This  is  an  intense  statement.  Death  has  been 
abolished,  or  rather  all  fear  of  death,  by  assuring 
men  that  their  narrow  existence  on  the  earth  is 
the  beginning  rather  than  the  end  of  the  soul's 
career.  When  the  fact  of  immortality  is  brought 
into  radiant  prominence  all  the  motives  which 
govern  us  in  this  life  are  changed  by  being  en- 
nobled. We  are  not  to  work  with  the  grave  in 
view,  but  with  the  knowledge  that  heaven  is  just 
below  the  horizon.  There  is  a  kind  of  spiritual 
legerdemain  in  such  a  conviction.  We  suddenly 
become  disrobed  of  our  peasant's  garb  and  are 
clothed  in  the  raiment  of  princes. 

When  an  old  and  grim  Norse  chieftain  lay  dying 
the  priest  asked  him,  among  other  things,  if  he 
could  forgive  his  enemies.      He  feebly  replied,  "  I 

204 


SCIENCE    AND    THE    SOUL.  20$ 

have  no  enemies;  I  have  killed  them  all."  The 
holy  father  was  astounded,  and  sought  an  expla- 
nation. The  sufferer  whispered,  "  I  have  killed  my 
enemies  by  changing  them  into  friends." 

In  like  manner  Death  has  been  abolished,  for  he 
is  no  longer  the  grave-digger  of  the  race,  but  the 
sentinel  who  stands  with  his  hand  on  the  door  of 
another  life,  ready  to  open  it  when  the  summons 
comes  to  each  of  us  in  turn. 

But  if  we  close  the  Bible  and  seek  for  cheering 
arguments  elsewhere,  they  are  not  difficult  to  find. 
Science  very  reverently  corroborates  the  assertions 
of  the  text,  and  does  it  without  hesitation  or  men- 
tal reservation.  It  ought  to  be  so,  and  therefore 
it  is  so,  for  if  there  is  a  God's  world  and  a  God's 
Word,  the  two  may  not  contradict  each  other  if 
rightly  interpreted.  When  science  speaks,  then 
revelation  must  needs  cry  Amen  !  And  when  rev- 
elation speaks,  science  must  nod  its  head  in  ap- 
proval. 

In  the  matter  of  immortality  the  Word  and  the 
world  teach  the  same  lesson.  For  example,  Pro- 
fessor Young,  of  Princeton,  tells  ns  some  startling 
and  suggestive  truths  about  the  solar  system,  its 
duration  and  its  probable  destiny.     There  seems 


206  HERALD    SERMONS. 

to  be  no  doubt  among  astronomers  that  the  sun  is 
gradually  cooling  and  that  its  shrinkage  is  about 
two  hundred  and  fifty  feet  each  year.  Since  the 
diameter  of  that  body  is  more  than  eight  hundred 
and  fifty  thousand  miles  this  slight  shrinkage  seems 
of  no  consequence.  It  is  not  the  rate  of  shrink- 
age, though,  but  the  fact  of  shrinkage,  which  we 
are  to  consider ;  for  however  slow  the  process  of 
decay  may  be,  it  still  remains  certain  that  at  some 
time  in  the  future  the  fire  in  the  sun  will  go  out, 
and  when  that  event  occurs  the  whole  dependent 
system  of  worlds,  from  Mercury  to  Neptune,  will 
go  out  with  it. 

Professor  Young  is  very  conservative  in  his  esti- 
mate of  duration,  but  he  says  that  if  we  can  as- 
sume the  truth  of  certain  statements,  which  it 
would  be  difficult  to  deny,  it  is  safe  to  conclude 
"  that  the  sun's  past  history  must  cover  some  fif- 
teen or  twenty  milHon  years."  Then,  turning  to 
the  future,  he  adds  that  at  the  present  rate  of  ra- 
diation'' the  sun, must  within  five  or  ten  million 
years  "  become  so  changed  that  "  life  on  the  earth 
as  we  now  know  life  would  probably  be  impos- 
sible." 

Now  we  approach  the  argument  in  which  we 


SCIENCE    AND    THE    SOUL.  207 

are  all  interested.  It  is  clear  "  that  the  present 
system  of  stars  and  worlds  is  not  an  eternal  one. 
If  we  carry  our  imagination  backward  we  reach  at 
last  a  beginning  of  things  which  has  no  intelligible 
antecedent;  if  forward,  an  end  of  things  in  stag- 
nation. That  by  some  process  or  other  this  end 
of  things  will  result  in  '  a  new  heavens  and  a  new 
earth  '  we  can  hardh"  doubt,  but  science  has  as 
yet  no  word  of  explanation.'' 

That  is  to  say,  matter,  energy,  cannot  be  annihi- 
lated. The  fashion  of  them  may  be  altered,  but 
destruction  is  impossible.  The  solar  system  may 
go  to  pieces,  and  certainly  will  do  so,  but  its  con- 
stituent elements  will  continue,  and  at  some  time 
or  other  will  be  gathered  together  again  in  the  for- 
mation of  "  a  new  heavens  and  a  new  earth." 

Can  it  be  true,  then,  that  the  physical  world 
may  ha\c  a  death  and  a  resurrection,  but  for  the 
spiritual  energies  of  the  human  race  there  is  to  be 
neither  a  new  heavens  nor  a  new  earth  ?  Matter 
cannot  be  destroyed,  but  mind  will  be?  The  clod 
of  earth  by  the  roadside  is  guarded  by  eternal  law 
^ — so  jealously  guarded  that  not  an  inhering  ele- 
ment, however  disguised,  can  suffer  extinction.  It 
may  cease  to  be  visible  and  hide  itself  from  detec- 


208  HERALD    SERMONS. 

tion,  but  it  exists  in  its  entirety  and  will  in  the 
future  find  its  place  and  continue. 

Is  it  scientifically  logical  that  all  these  subtle 
powers,  aspirations,  emotions,  which  constitute  what 
we  call  the  soul,  are  so  nearly  worthless  that  they 
count  for  nothing  and  may  be  dispensed  with  ?  Is 
the  spirit  of  man  the  anomaly  of  the  universe  and 
will  it  die  when  all  the  rest  of  creation  rushes  on 
to  a  higher  level  of  existence?  Has  a  cobblestone 
or  a  cloud  or  a  stroke  of  lightning  so  great  an  ad- 
vantage over  a  man?  Shall  we  go  into  darkness, 
while  everything  else  goes  into  light?  Can  it  be 
that  the  house  in  which  we  are  living  is  eternal, 
but  the  resident  who  occupies  the  house  is  mortal? 

That  would  hardly  seem  consistent  with  the 
divine  order  of  things.  The  logic  of  the  situation 
allows  of  no  discrimination  against  that  nobler 
form  of  energy  which  consciously  hopes  for  im- 
mortality while  other  forms  which  are  unconscious 
shall  blindly  live  forever. 

Science  and  revelation  are  at  one  on  this  point. 
They  both  declare  that  the  soul  continues  after 
these  few  short  years  are  told,  and  they  announce 
**  a  new  heavens  and  a  new  earth  "  for  man  as  well 
as  matter. 


WHICH    CHURCH    IS    CHRIST'S? 

"  But  I  fear,  lest  ...  by  any  means  your  minds  should  be 
corrupted  from  the  simplicity  that  is  in  Christ." — 2  Cor.  xi.  3. 

St.  Paul  was  a  careful  student  of  human  na- 
ture. He  was  scholar,  critic,  man  of  the  world, 
and  knightly  defender  of  what  he  believed  to  be 
the  truth. 

When  forecasting  the  future  of  the  church  at 
Corinth,  he  dreaded  the  tendency,  everywhere 
prevalent,  to  depart  from  the  simplicity  of  the 
gospel  and  change  the  new  religion  into  a  kind 
of  philosophic  theory  which  would  open  the  door 
to  all  sorts  of  disputations.  Against  that  ten- 
dency he  warns  his  followers  in  this  remarkable 
epistle. 

If  we  had  preserved  this  simplicity  which  St. 
Paul  speaks  of  the  Christian  church  would  be  the 
strongest  force  in  the  world  to-day.  But  we 
have  sadly  depacted  from  it,  and  the  moral  influ- 
ence of  the  church  has  correspondingly  decreased. 
209 


2  10  HERALD    SERMONS. 

Churches  are  not  for  the  people,  but  for  the 
classes — an  expensive  edifice  in  which  the  wealthy 
may  pray  to  tJieir  Father,  and  cheap  churches  in 
which  the  poor  may  pray  'to  theirs. 

The  line  is  drawn  as  tightly  between  the  rich 
and  the  poor  in  religion  as  in  society.  It  is  al- 
most impossible  to  say  of  any  church  that  it  was 
built  for  tJie  people — that  is,  for  whomsoever  may 
see  fit  to  worship  in  it.  The  clergy  will  tell  you 
that  this  is  not  true,  but  the  experience  of  every 
poor  man  who  would  kneel  by  the  side  of  his  rich 
neighbor  in  a  costly  edifice  proves  that  it  is  true, 
for  his  welcome  is  lukewarm,  if  not  forbidding. 
Religion  is  apt  to  keep  one  eye  on  the  gospel  and 
the  other  on  the  wealthy  members  of  the  congre- 
gation. That  which  St.  Paul  feared  has  come  to 
pass,  and  men  have  been  "  corrupted  from  the 
simplicity  that  is  in  Christ." 

The  Lord  preached  to  all  alike.  Wealth  was 
as  kindly  treated  as  poverty,  or,  to  state  the  fact 
in  other  terms,  Christ  cared  for  neither  wealth 
nor  poverty,  but  for  souls.  He  had  a  word  to 
utter,  a  law  to  announce,  a  message  to  deliver, 
and  it  was  needed  by  the  members  of  the  sanhe- 
drim  as   much    as    by   the    poor    Magdalen   who 


WHICH    CHURCH    IS    CHRIST'S?  211 

crouched  at  His  feet.  Nothing  could  be  more 
simple,  more  beautiful,  or  more  godlike  than  the 
way  in  which  He  ignored  social  environment,  both 
that  of  the  hut  and  that  of  the  palace,  and  ap- 
pealed to  men  as  men.  The  open  air  was  His 
temple,  the  sands  of  the  sea-shore  were  His  pul- 
pit, the  multitude  was  His  congregation.  He 
needed  no  choir  to  attract  the  people,  no  sur- 
pliced  assistants,  no  announcement  of  a  popular 
topic,  none  of  the  accessories  which  mark  our 
modern  worship. 

Besides,  His  only  creed  consisted  of  a  belief  in 
the  fatherhood  of  God  and  the  brotherhood  of 
man.  These  two  statements,  which  are  within 
the  comprehension  of  every  creature  on  the  globe, 
are  like  the  sources  of  the  Mississippi  and  the 
Amazon,  whose  floods  irrigate  whole  continents 
and  so  fertilize  the  soil  that  it  cheerfully  brings 
forth  crops  for  the  sustenance  of  millions.  Christ 
demanded  honest  lives  and  honest  aspirations, 
pure  hearts  and  truthful  lips.  If  He  rejected  or 
received  any  one,  it  was  on  the  broad  basis  of  the 
saying,  "  He  that  is  not  with  Me  is  against  Me." 
You  could  have  been  counted  as  His  follower  in 
old  Judea  if  you  had  simply  believed  that  there  is 


2  12  HERALD    SERMONS. 

a  heaven  above  you,  and  a  place  for  you  there  if 
you  will  earn  the  right  to  it  by  loving  your  neigh- 
bor as  yourself.  Nothing  is  more  amazing  than 
the  simplicity  of  Christ's  teachings,  unless  it  be 
the  manner  in  which  they  have  been  formulated 
by  ecclesiastical  councils,  with  the  apparent  pur- 
pose of  excluding  the  large  majority  of  mankind. 

The  question  arises,  therefore,  and  it  is  a  very 
serious  question :  If  the  Lord,  accompanied  by 
His  apostles,  should  revisit  the  earth,  which  of  all 
the  churches  in  the  land  would  they  approve  as 
fairly  representing  His  doctrine  and  divine  pur- 
pose? Would  the  exceeding  pomp  and  ceremo- 
nial which  prevail  be  regarded  as  a  corruption  of 
the  simplicity  of  the  gospel  as  delivered  by  Him 
nineteen  centuries  ago?  Is  there  any  church  of 
which  He  would  say,  ''This  is  wholly  mine"?  or 
would  He  be  so  pained  at  the  fashion  and  selfish- 
ness and  worldliness  which  are  evident  everywhere 
that  He  would  choose  to  preach  at  the  street- 
corner  or  on  the  open  square  ? 

And  if  the  apostles  desired  to  become  members 
of  a  church,  could  they  tolerate  the  long  creeds 
which  would  meet  them  at  the  threshold,  or  would 


WHICH    CHURCH    IS    CHRIST'S?  213 

they  rather  say,  "  We  love  the  Lord  Jesus — that 
is  all  He  requires  of  us,  and  if  it  is  not  enough  we 
will  go  hence  "  ? 

We  do  not  impeach  the  motives  of  any  one. 
The  pulpit  is  a  great  moral  force  and  our  churches 
are  the  bulwark  of  society.  We  are  unstinted  in 
our  praise  of  what  has  been  done,  but  we  believe 
that  if  Christians  more  fully  represented  the  sim- 
plicity of  Christ,  were  more  tolerant  of  each  other, 
gave  a  more  generous  welcome  to  the  poor  in- 
stead of  holding  themselves  aloof,  broke  down  the 
barriers  of  sectarianism,  and  vied  wdth  each  other 
in  the  noble  rivalry  of  good  works,  the  church 
would  be  infinitely  more  efficient  than  it  is,  and 
men  would  feel  that  it  is  *'  guide,  philosopher,  and 
friend."  We  make  slender  complaint,  for  we  honor 
the  clerg}',  but  there  is  no  reason  why  the  church 
should  not  be  as  inclusive  as  Christ  w^as,  bidding 
all  alike  to  come  to  the  feast,  and  taking  no  ac- 
count of  a  man's  wealth  or  po\'erty. 

Such  a  church,  with  no  other  creed  than  can  be 
found  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  would  be  built 
on  eternal  foundations  and  become  the  leader  of 
the  world  in  all  good  deeds.     The  indifference  of 


2  14  HERALD    SERMONS. 

the  community  would  change  to  enthusiasm,  and 
even  the  agnostic  would  doff  his  hat  as  he  passed 
the  door  and  admit  that  its  best  vindication  is 
found  in  the  fact  that  **  by  their  fruits  ye  shall 
know  them." 


THE    BIBLE. 

"  But  My  Word  shall  not  pass  away." — Matt.  xxiv.  35. 

If  for  no  other  reason,  we  must  needs  give  re- 
spectful attention  to  the  teachings  of  the  Bible  be- 
cause they  have  stood  the  test  of  time  and  sur- 
vived the  adverse  criticism  of  the  ages. 

If  the  law  of  the  survival  of  the  fittest  holds 
good  in  the  domain  of  literature,  then  the  ideas 
which  are  still  young  and  vigorous  after  eighteen 
centuries  would  seem  to  be  founded  on  eternal 
truth. 

It  is  safe  to  predict  that  the  Bible  will  continue 
to  control  the  lives  of  men  until  we  reach  the 
hither  boundary  of  the  millennium. 

It  has  been  an  encouragement  to  the  oppressed, 
a  warning  to  the  wrong-doer,  and  a  consolation  to 
the  bereaved,  and  as  long  as  oppression  is  to  be 
borne,  as  long  as  warnings  are  needed,  as  long  as 
human  nature  needs  to  be  consoled  in  its  sorrows, 
so  long  will  the  Bible  occupy  its  place  in  the  house- 
hold as  an  indispensable  \olume. 
215 


2l6  HERALD    SERMONS. 

It  may  contain  chronological  errors  for  aught 
we  know ;  the  authorship  of  its  various  parts  may 
be  disputed ;  we  may  shake  our  heads  in  doubt  at 
the  record  of  miracles  which  it  contains ;  we  may 
stoutly  deny  its  verbal  inspiration,  and  refuse  to 
accept  it  as  the  direct  and  final  Word  of  God  to 
the  race — these  matters  are  of  minor  consequence 
and  affect  the  value  of  the  Book  very  Httle. 

Agnostic  and  believer,  thoughtful  heathen  and 
devout  Christian,  however,  must  needs  acknow- 
ledge with  one  accord  that  it  has  occupied  a  promi- 
nent place  in  the  history  of  civilization,  and  that 
not  all  the  libraries  of  the  planet  can  so  entirely 
fill  its  place  that  we  can  afford  to  throw  that  one 
magnificent  volume  aside. 

Take  it  as  a  whole,  conform  your  life  to  its  spir- 
it, follow  its  injunctions,  absorb  its  essential  ele- 
ments, accept  its  declaration  that  the  unfettered 
soul  shall  rise  from  the  enthralment  of  bodily  lim- 
itations and  join  the  company  of  the  departed  in 
the  land  whose  flowers  never  fade  and  whose  joys 
are  never  overshadowed  by  sorrow,  and  your  years 
will  be  a  satisfaction  to  yourself  and  a  benefit  to 
your  fellows. 

All  that  is  beyond  a  peradventure.     The  state- 


THE    BIBLE.  21/ 

ment  has  been  proved  true  by  a  thousand  times  a 
thousand  experiments.  It  is  too  late  to  deny  the 
fact.  Make  the  trial  in  your  personal  experience 
and  you  will  become  an  enthusiast  in  its  defense. 
The  old  Book  holds  its  own  just  as  a  granite 
headland  does  against  which  the  waves  of  countless 
storms  have  broken  and  only  dashed  themselves 
into  starry  spray. 

If  you  visit  the  Patent  Office  in  Washington  you 
will  observe  three  important  facts:  First,  there 
are  models  of  machinery  which  has  far  outlived 
the  inventor,  and  if  you  ask  why,  the  answer  is 
that  it  is  still  useful.  Second,  there  are  models 
of  contrivances  which  were  useful  for  a  time  and 
then  became  relics  and  curiosities.  Third,  there 
are  inventions  which  promised  to  be  useful,  but 
utterly  failed  in  their  purpose.  They  were  thought 
by  the  inventor  to  be  valuable,  but  when  subjected 
to  a  practical  test  were  found  to  be  useless  and 
were  therefore  discarded  at  once,  and  we  have 
never  given  them  a  second  thought. 

Here,  then,  is  the  inexorable  and  relentless  law 
— namely,  that  what  is  useful  lives  as  long  as  it 
remains  useful,  and  not  a  moment  longer,  while 
the  useless  raises  its  head  above  the  water  for  an 


2l8  HERALD    SERMONS. 

instant  only,  and  then  sinks  under  the  drowning 
wave,  never  to  reappear. 

That  law  is  applied  with  despotic  energy.  The 
good  remains ;  the  bad  is  lost  sight  of.  Nothing 
under  heaven  can  keep  an  idea  on  the  surface  un- 
less it  rightfully  belongs  there,  and  it  will  hold  its 
position  only  so  long  as  it  is  valuable  to  the  com- 
munity. Some  books  are  like  snowflakes  on  a 
lake:  they  just  touch  the  surface  and  then  disap- 
pear. If,  however,  a  book,  any  book,  keeps  at  the 
front  for  twenty  generations  you  may  be  perfectly 
sure  that  there  is  a  good  reason  for  it. 

We  do  not  treat  the  Bible  with  respect  because 
the  church  tells  us  we  must  believe  it  to  be  the 
Word  of  God,  but  because  it  helps  us  to  be  noble 
men  and  women ;  because  it  is  a  purifying  and 
elevating  influence,  and  must  therefore  be,  in  some 
sense,  God's  revelation  to  the  world. 

Treat  the  Bible  in  a  broad  and  generous  and 
hospitable  way.  When  you  make  a  meal  of  fish 
a  few  bigots  may  tell  you  that  you  should  eat 
bones  and  all.  You  exercise  your  common  sense, 
however,  and  neither  eat  the  bones  nor  throw  the 
whole  dish  out  of  the  window  because  some  one 
has   a   stupid    theory   about    it.      You    know  well 


THE    BIBLE.  219 

enough  that  parts  of  the  fish  are  palatable  and 
nutritious,  and  the  narrowness  of  the  bigot  will  not 
make  }'ou  choke  yourself  with  the  bones,  nor  will 
the  adverse  criticism  of  the  doubter  persuade  you 
to  go  hungry. 

Use  the  Bible  as  you  do  the  fish.  It  is  nour- 
ishing, strengthening,  and  health-giving.  Make  it 
your  daily  food,  and  if  perchance  you  come  across 
a  bone  don't  try  to  swallow  it,  but  lay  it  aside  and 
go  on  with  your  meal. 

Life  is  too  short  for  argument,  and  sorrow^s  are 
so  sharp  that  we  cannot  get  on  without  consolation 
if  it  can  be  found.  Go  where  you  will  for  com- 
fort in  your  struggles,  and  God  speed  you  in  your 
search  ;  but  we  doubt  if  you  will  find  as  much  else- 
where as  in  the  blessed  Book  on  which  so  many 
sad  heads  have  been  pillowed,  and  in  the  promise 
it  contains  that  after  life's  fitful  fever  you  shall 
wake  from  sleep  and  be  welcomed  b}'  greeting 
dear  ones  who  have  waited  for  you  and  for  whom 
you  have  grieved  these  many  long  years. 


CHRISTMAS    DAY. 

Little  wonder  that  the  Hebrews  were  disap- 
pointed in  the  person  and  mission  of  Jesus,  or 
that  they  Hstened  to  Him  with  something  of  bit- 
terness. 

His  crucifixion  was  the  inevitable  result  of  their 
passionate  patriotism.  They  longed  for  a  master- 
ful leader  who  would  break  the  triumph  of  the 
hated  Roman,  and  were  ready  to  spend  life  and 
fortune  to  humble  the  Roman  eagles;  but  they 
found  in  the  Nazarene  nothing  more  than  a  sad- 
eyed  man  who  quenched  their  ardor  by  bidding 
them  love  their  enemies. 

The  stories  that  clustered  about  His  birth  were 
well  suited  to  excite  high  anticipations,  for  they 
were  a  prophecy  of  great  achievements.  It  was 
a  tradition  that  His  coming  would  be  unexpected, 
that  He  was  to  be  born  of  a  virgin,  that  miracles 
would  attend  His  advent,  and  that  Bethlehem 
would    be    conspicuous    as   the    royal    birthplace. 


CHRISTMAS    DAY.  22  1 

The  humility  of  that  insignificant  village  was  to 
be  encircled  by  a  diadem. 

When,  therefore,  the  Preacher  organized  no 
crusade,  disdained  all  plans  of  conquest,  found  His 
companionship  among  the  peasantry,  declared  that 
He  was  indeed  the  Messiah,  but  that  His  kingdom 
was  not  of  this  world,  a  thrill  of  horror  made  the 
proud  nation's  blood  run  cold  and  forced  them  to 
proclaim  Him  an  impostor.  The  shadow  of  Cal- 
vary fell  athwart  His  path  at  the  beginning  of  His 
ministry,  when  He  uttered  the  words  of  the  Ser- 
mon on  the  Mount,  and  from  that  moment  until 
the  cry  went  forth,  "  It  is  finished!  "  He  walked 
along  the  rugged  road  of  relentless  martyrdom. 

If  we  had  been  citizen  merchants  of  Jerusalem, 
or  priests  of  the  Temple,  or  among  the  seventy- 
two  senators  who  constituted  the  sanhedrim  in 
that  age  of  military  achievement,  and  had  been 
reared  in  the  hope  of  deliverance  from  an  ignomin- 
ious yoke  of  tributary  servitude,  should  we  have 
borne  patiently  the  repulse  of  our  aspirations,  the 
defeat  of  our  lifelong  hopes,  or  should  we  have 
joined  the  turbulent  crowd  in  the  Via  Dolorosa? 
Should  we  have  been  far-sighted  enough  to  see 
that  His  divine  ideas  would  in  time  prove  to  be 


222  HERALD    SERMONS. 

stronger  than  Roman  swords,  and  that  the  triumph 
of  righteousness  is  grander  than  the  triumph  of 
arms,  or  should  we  have  witnessed  the  crucifixion 
with  the  conviction  that  substantial  justice  had 
been  done  to  a  pretender? 

There  is,  by  the  way,  a  beautiful  astronomical 
fact — some  would  call  it  a  fable — connected  with 
the  star  of  Bethlehem.  Near  the  little  star  Kappa, 
in  the  constellation  of  Cassiopeia,  was  seen  by 
Tycho  Brahe  in  1572  a  temporary  brilliant  which 
for  a  while  outshone  every  other  star  in  the  hea- 
vens, not  excepting  Sirius  itself.  In  a  few  months 
it  burned  diml}^,  and  in  a  year  and  a  half  it  disap- 
peared and  has  never  been  seen  since.  It  is  pos- 
sible that  the  brilliant  seen  by  Tycho  may  have  a 
periodicity  somewhat  exceeding  three  hundred 
years.  If  we  carry  this  periodical  appearance 
backward  it  is  easily  supposed  that  its  apparition 
may  have  occurred  at  the  birth  of  Christ.  It  does 
not  require  much  imagination  to  connect  it  with 
the  Magi,  who  must  have  been  astonished  at  its 
appearance,  and  with  the  event  that  took  place 
when  the  angels  sang  their  overture  of  peace  and 
good-will. 

But   however   critics  may  differ  about  historic 


CHRISTMAS    DAY.  223 

statements,  there  is  a  grateful  agreement  as  to  the 
value  of  Christian  philosophy.  It  illuminates  this 
life  as  the  lantern  in  a  lighthouse  sends  its  rays 
into  surrounding  darkness,  and  with  the  same  be- 
neficent purpose.  Christianity  is  the  radiance  of 
modern  civilization.  As  the  sun  furnishes  the 
light  of  the  physical  world,  so  the  cross  illuminates 
the  present  and  dispels  the  mists  of  futurity.  It 
is  possible  to  the  believer  to  feel  that  death  is  a 
friendly  arm  that  lifts  him  to  a  higher  level,  and 
that  churchyards  are  the  resting-places  of  souls  on 
their  way  to  heaven. 

If  all  this  were  a  dream  it  would  still  be  uplift- 
ing. If  it  had  no  basis  in  the  logical  faculty,  and 
we  were  forced  to  repudiate  it  when  we  looked  stern 
facts  in  the  face,  it  would  still  appeal  to  the  nobler 
elements  of  our  nature,  and  urge  us  to  wish  that 
it  might  be  true.  But  when  it  is  founded  on  the 
best  scholarship  of  all  ages ;  when  it  collects  about 
itself  the  profoundest  thinkers  of  nineteen  centu- 
ries, who  have  made  it  the  theme  of  eloquence 
and  song;  when,  by  its  adaptability  to  the  wants 
of  the  race,  it  becomes  the  central  impulse  of  a 
public  opinion  more  charitable,  more  kindly,  and 
more  moral  than  has  ever  yet  been  known,  we  can 


224  HERALD    SERMONS. 

hardly  fail  to  usher  in  the  day  that  marked  its 
advent  with  the  ringing  of  bells  and  paeans  of 
praise. 

Christmas  Day  is  encircled  by  solemn  injunc- 
tions which  fill  life  with  hardy  ambitions,  and  by 
unspeakable  promises  which  temper  the  sorrow  of 
bereavement  and  force  the  lips  into  a  smile  while 
the  eyes  are  dim  with  tears.  We  do  well  to  set  it 
apart  from  the  rest  of  the  year  and  crown  it  with 


A    MAN    AND    A    WOMAN. 

"  Male  and  female  created  He  them." — Gen.  i.  27. 

There  is  no  reason  to  suppose  that  in  the 
economy  of  nature  the  Almighty  has  given  to 
woman  a  place  of  inferior  importance  to  that  oc- 
cupied by  man. 

She  was  not  made  to  be  his  slave,  but  his  equal ; 
not  merely  to  soothe  him  in  his  sorrows,  but  to 
share  them  ;  not  to  be  the  recipient  of  his  bounty, 
but  the  divinely  ordained  partner  of  his  ambitions. 

In  the  history  of  the  world  it  is  as  easy  to  dis- 
cover the  degree  of  civilization  which  has  been 
reached  in  a  given  epoch  by  noting  the  position 
of  woman  as  it  is  to  tell  the  temperature  of  the  air 
by  looking  at  a  thermometer. 

In  every  age  in  which  women  are  more  or  less 
subordinate,  men  are  more  or  less  brutal ;  and  it 
is  safe  to  predict  that  the  highest  type  of  manhood 
will  never  be  attained  except  by  association  with 
the  highest  type  of  womanhood. 
225 


226  HERALD    SERMONS. 

The  legislation  and  public  opinion  which  can 
break  down  all  barriers  of  prejudice  and  give 
women  an  opportunity  to  develop  whatever  tal- 
ents or  faculties  or  genius  they  possess,  will  also 
have  an  ennobling  influence  on  men,  for  the  moral 
nature  of  a  man  is  always  even  with  the  moral 
nature  of  the  women  with  whom  he  keeps  com- 
pany. If  you  would  make  men  better  you  must 
begin  by  making  women  better. 

From  the  beginning  of  time  until  the  close  of 
this  nineteenth  century,  the  world  has  been  almost 
exclusively  a  man's  world.  Circumstances  have 
thrown  him  to  the  front,  and  he  has  maintained 
his  dictatorship.  He  has  decreed  in  his  own  inter- 
est that  he  may  do  as  he  pleases,  and  that  woman 
shall  do  as  she  is  told  to.  That  has  been  the  law, 
but  it  will  probably  be  repealed  before  the  twen- 
tieth century  sinks  in  the  west.  Men  have  de- 
clared that  there  shall  be  a  discrimination  in  the 
matter  of  vice,  and  that  the  discrimination  shall 
be  in  their  favor.  If  they  fall  under  temptation 
it  Is  a  merely  venial  offense,  not  by  any  means  to 
be  counted  against  them,  but  rather  to  be  taken 
as  a  matter  of  course.  If  a  woman  yields  under  a 
provocation  a  thousandfold  greater  the  good  Christ 


A    MAX    AND    A    WOMAN.  22; 

must  come  to  earth  again,  for  He  alone  will  give 
her  pity.  The  law  which  men  have  made  for  pur- 
poses of  self-protection  is  so  elastic  that  it  will 
stretch  indefiniteh',  but  they  have  made  an  en- 
tirely different  law  for  women,  and  hammered  it 
from  unbending  steel. 

That  is  the  anomaly  of  all  time.  It  is  right  for 
a  man  to  be  vicious.  More  than  that,  it  is  rather 
praiseworthy.  But  viciousness  in  a  woman  is  a 
crime  which  the  worst  man  in  the  community  will 
not  condone.  **  For  myself,"  he  says,  "  all  things 
are  justifiable,  but  for  you  there  is  only  contempt 
when  you  overstep  the  limit  which  I  have  chosen 
to  draw." 

The  reason  for  this  is  perfectly  plain,  and  in 
stating  the  reason  we  show  its  inherent  injustice. 
The  world  has  been  a  warring  world.  History  is 
simply  the  story  of  successive  battle-fields.  Brawn, 
not  brain,  has  been  the  chief  factor  of  progress. 
For  ages,  therefore,  the  world  was  what  men  made 
it.  The  bow  and  arrow  at  first  and  later  on  the 
flash  of  gunpowder  have  settled  all  controversies. 
Women  had  small  part  in  the  conflict,  because  they 
were  not  fitted  for  the  task.  The  man  was  thor- 
oughly dominant,  and  being  dominant  he  was  des- 


228  HERALD    SERMONS. 

potic.  He  fashioned  everything  to  suit  himself, 
even  public  opinion.  He  was  master  of  the  situa- 
tion, and  solely  because  a  woman  could  not  stand 
by  his  side  in  war  she  was  not  allowed  to  stand 
by  his  side  in  peace. 

But  the  complexion  of  affairs  has  changed  after 
this  long  lapse  of  time.  This  is  not  at  all  the 
world  in  which  our  ancestors  lived.  It  is  as  differ- 
ent in  many  essential  respects  as  though  we  had 
been  transported  to  Mars.  As  to  the  matters  in 
which  we  are  now  interested,  women  and  men  are 
equals,  and  they  stand  side  by  side.  The  moment 
when  warriors  ceased  to  be  heroes  woman  began 
to  take  her  rightful  place.  The  instant  brains 
began  to  be  the  motive  power  of  society  woman 
proved  her  right  to  engage  in  the  competition. 

But  even  now,  under  the  new  regime,  the  old 
ideas  prevail.  They  are  giving  way  by  degrees, 
but  they  are  still  persistent.  Man  claims  rights 
which  he  denies  to  his  wife,  but  he  stammers  an 
apology.  It  is  no  longer  a  man's  world,  but  a 
man's  and  woman's  world,  at  least  in  part.  When 
it  becomes  wholly  so  it  will  be  better  than  it  is 
now. 

We   have   about   settled  the  question  whether 


A    iMAN    AND    A    WOMAN.  229 

there  is  any  sex  in  vice,  and  once  settled  it  will 
never  vex  us  again.  The  preposterous  statement 
that  a  woman  is  more  guilty  than  a  man  for  the 
same  act  is  slowly  slinking  away  from  the  criti- 
cisms of  the  age.  It  is  a  contemptible  statement, 
which  can  be  maintained  by  brute  force,  but  not 
by  fair  argument. 

Now  the  conclusion  to  be  drawn  from  all  this  is 
that  women  are  not  to  sink  to  the  level  of  men, 
but  that  men  must  rise  to  the  level  of  women. 
We  seek  for  the  ideal  life,  and  men  do  not  furnish 
it,  but  women  do.  Humiliating  as  the  confession 
is,  it  is  true  that  the  average  woman  is  purer  than 
the  average  man.  The  change  that  is  needed, 
therefore,  is  a  change  of  standard.  We  must 
abolish  the  standard  which  men  have  set  for  them- 
selves and  substitute  the  standard  which  men  have 
set  for  women.  Not  less  purity  for  women  should 
be  the  rule,  but  more  purity  for  men. 

If  we  understand  the  spirit  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment, that  is  the  requisition.  There  is  nothing  in 
this  world  as  admirable  as  a  woman  whose  heart  and 
life  are  white,  and  there  is  no  reason  why  she  should 
not  demand  of  the  man  who  leads  her  to  the  altar 
a  heart  and  life  that  are  just  as  white  as  her  own. 


THE    VALUE    OF    MONEY. 

"  For  wisdom  is  a  defense,  and  money  is  a  defense:  but  the 
excellency  of  knowledge  is,  that  wisdom  giveth  life  to  them  that 
have  it." — Eccl.  vii.  12. 

There  is  a  word  to  be  said  to  young  men ;  not 
a  harsh  word,  but  a  word  of  friendly  and  kindly 
counsel. 

And  here  is  the  reason  for  it,  namely,  because 
a  good  start  goes  a  long  way  toward  a  good  end- 
ing. If  the  bullet  leaves  the  rifle-barrel  with  only 
a  slight  divergence  from  the  right  direction,  it  may 
never  hit  the  target  at  all,  for  the  farther  it  goes 
the  more  wide  of  the  mark  it  is ;  but  if  it  leaves 
the  barrel  perfectly  aimed  for  the  center  of  the 
target,  it  is  safe  to  predict  a  good  shot. 

If  a  young  man  is  equipped  with  the  right  ideas, 
the  chances  are  in  favor  of  his  being  of  some  value 
to  the  world ;  but  if  when  he  stands  on  the  thresh- 
old of  life  he  has  no  controlling  moral  principle, 
he  is  like  a  chip  on  the  surface  of  a  freshet — that 
230 


THE   VALUE    OF    MONEY.  23 1 

is,  he  may,  if  he  has  rare  good  fortune,  reach  the 
sea,  or  he  may  be  thrown  on  the  bank  at  any  turn 
of  the  current. 

It  is  impossible,  therefore,  to  exaggerate  the 
necessity  of  a  fine  equipment,  because  the  fate  of 
the  soul,  long  after  this  life  has  ended,  may  de- 
pend on  it.  While  it  is  possible  for  a  boy  with  a 
mind  full  of  mistaken  ideas  to  throw  them  aside 
one  after  the  other  as  he  proceeds  on  his  journey, 
it  is  also  true  that  he  runs  great  risks  and  will 
probably  end  his  career  with  an  armful  of  regrets 
and  a  handful  of  real  happiness. 

Now  there  is  no  subject  on  which  there  are 
more  false  notions  than  on  the  subject  of  money. 
It  is  a  good  thing  to  have  money  and  a  good  thing 
to  work  for  it,  but  you  must  be  careful  not  to  pay 
too  large  a  price  for  it.  As  the  servant  of  a  noble 
man  money  is  exceedingly  valuable,  for  it  furnishes 
opportunities  to  enlarge  the  scope  of  charity  and 
benevolence.  As  the  master  of  a  niggardly  man 
it  develops  the  meaner  qualities  of  human  nature 
and  makes  its  possessor  a  mere  caricature. 

The  world  is  all  wrong  in  this  matter,  and  you 
will  require  a  deal  of  independence  to  put  yourself 
right.     There   is   in   the  community  an  overesti- 


232  HERALD    SERMONS. 

mate  of  wealth  which  is  very  demoralizing.  The 
Preacher  makes  a  catalogue  in  which  wisdom 
stands  at  the  head  and  money  follows  as  of  sec- 
ondary importance ;  but  modern  society  reverses 
the  order  and  puts  money  first,  with  wisdom  far 
below  it.  We  doff  our  hats  to  one  who  has  wealth 
but  no  character,  and  hardl}^  recognize  one  who 
has  an  honest  character  but  no  money.  The  re- 
sult is  that  we  work  too  hard  for  money  and  have 
too  light  an  opinion  of  character. 

If  truth  be  told,  it  is,  after  all,  the  men  of  char- 
acter and  not  the  men  of  money  who  have  made 
the  world  what  it  is.  That  fact  stands  in  the  fore- 
ground of  all  thoughtful  observation,  like  a  tower- 
ing monument  against  the  sky.  If  we  were  com- 
pelled to  do  without  the  one  or  the  other  it  would 
be  sheer  insanity  to  dispense  with  men  of  character 
and  retain  the  men  of  money. 

Let  us  be  clear  on  this  point.  The  clergy  are 
apt  to  talk  about  '*  filthy  lucre."  But  do  not  be 
led  astray.  Money  is  never  filthy  unless  it  makes 
the  soul  that  seeks  it  filthy.  It  is  your  right  to 
labor  for  it  and  your  right  to  get  it  if  you  can. 
You  are  justified  in  laying  plans  for  its  acquisi- 
tion, because  there  is  a  glorious  satisfaction  in  the 


THE    VALUE    OF    MONEY.  2^i, 

thought  that  you  will  want  for  nothing  in  your 
old  age  and  your  dear  ones  will  be  amply  pro- 
vided for.  But  have  a  care  that  you  do  not  come 
to  think  that  your  happiness  depends  on  it,  be- 
cause after  all  is  said  there  are  more  happy  poor 
men  than  happy  rich  men.  For  that  matter,  it  is 
a  grave  error  to  suppose  that  money  can  itself 
make  you  happy  Avithout  the  possession  of  other 
qualities  which  will  enable  you  to  enjoy  it  and  do 
good  with  it. 

The  business  of  the  world  is  closely  related  to 
the  progress  of  the  world.  It  is  a  noble  calling, 
that  of  the  business  man,  and  one  which  God  looks 
upon  with  tender  regard.  IMoney  and  philan- 
thropy are  twins,  born  of  the  same  good  mother, 
two  children  of  beauty  and  grace.  The  merchant's 
work  is  just  as  providential  as  that  of  the  clergy- 
man, and  his  mission,  if  he  rightly  understands  it, 
is  just  as  important.  If  the  consecrating  hands 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  are  laid  on  the  head  of  the 
preacher,  and  he  is  thus  de\-oted  to  a  special  task, 
so  are  the  same  hands  laid  in  equal  consecration 
on  the  head  of  the  young  man  who  starts  on  a 
business  career,  and  he  is  laid  under  solemn  obli- 
gations to  be  useful  to  his  fellows.     That  is  a  truth 


234  HERALD    SERMONS. 

which  cannot  be  too  keenly  appreciated.  We  can- 
not get  along  without  money-making,  and  the  one 
thing  we  insist  on,  therefore,  is  that  the  money- 
makers shall  be  honest  in  their  dealings  and  keep 
their  consciences  in  good  trim. 

More  than  that,  the  business  man  preaches  the 
gospel  of  rectitude  more  effectively  than  the  clergy 
can  do  it.  A  noble  deed  is  better  than  a  noble 
word.  The  word  may  incite  to  the  deed,  but  when 
we  get  to  heaven  the  merchant  who  has  led  a 
pure  life  will  occupy  as  high  a  place  as  the  minis- 
ter who  told  him  how  to  do  it.  George  Peabody's 
life  outweighs  the  sermons  of  a  century.  Such  a 
man  talks  to  the  whole  race,  and  his  voice  is  not 
hushed  when  he  dies.  As  the  light  of  a  distant 
star  floods  the  earth  long  after  the  star  itself  has 
been  extinguished,  so  the  uprightness  and  integ- 
rity of  the  merchant  exert  untold  influence  long 
after  a  sorrowing  people  have  laid  him  in  his  rest- 
ing-place. 

This,  then,  is  the  advice  we  offer:  Let  your 
ambition  run  high,  and  seek  its  realization  b}^  hard 
work,  but  remember  that  it  is  a  man's  soul  and 
not  his  pocket-book  which  goes  to  heaven.  You 
can  get  on  without  riches  if  need  be,  but  you  can- 


THE    VALUE    OF    MONEY.  235 

not  get  on  without  a  clean  conscience.  Make 
money,  but  do  not  worship  it.  Pay  a  good  price 
for  it,  but  not  more  than  it  is  worth.  Honest  dol- 
lars hurt  no  one,  but  dishonest  gains  are  a  con- 
suming fire. 


THE    DUTY    OF   THE    CHURCH. 

"  The  unity  of  the  Spirit." — Eph.  iv.  3. 

We  are  all  agreed  that  the  Christian  church  is 
an  indispensable  factor  of  our  civilization.  How- 
ever critical  we  may  be  of  its  defects,  we  must 
needs  admit  that  it  is  the  most  conspicuous  and 
important  element  of  human  progress. 

It  has  encouraged  our  aspirations,  defended  a 
high  standard  of  public  and  private  virtue,  de- 
nounced the  vices  and  vicious  tendencies  of  so- 
ciety, organized  a  thousand  charities  for  the  rehef 
of  the  unfortunate,  given  comfort  to  the  sorrow- 
ing, strength  to  the  tempted,  resignation  to  the 
bereaved.  It  represents  our  noblest  impulses,  our 
loftiest  ambitions,  and  those  hopes  which  in  their 
upward  flight  are  so  daring  that  they  search  for 
another  life  when  the  resources  of  the  present 
shall  be  exhausted. 

But  the  church  has  of  late  years  lost  a  part  of 
its  old  prestige.  The  world  has  learned  the  lesson 
236 


THE  DUTY  OF  THE  CHURCH.      237 

which  it  aforetime  taught,  and  is  looking  either 
for  new  truths  or  a  new  appHcation  of  ancient 
truths.  Neither  Hfe  nor  religion  is  quite  the  same 
thing  that  it  was  to  our  fathers,  for  both  life  and 
religion  are  more  valuable,  more  significant  than 
they  have  ever  been.  They  should  therefore  pro- 
duce larger  results  and  furnish  us  with  grander  in- 
centives. The  church  must  recognize  these  facts 
and  fit  itself  to  the  crucial  emergency,  or  it  will 
fall  into  innocuous  desuetude. 

What  is  needed  above  everything  else  is  the 
unity  of  the  Spirit.  There  are  too  many  theolog- 
ical standards  for  an  age  which  takes  no  pleasure 
in  theology,  and  there  is  too  much  sectarianism  at 
a  time  when  men  believe  more  firmly  in  brotherly 
love  than  they  have  done  in  an}-  previous  historic 
epoch.  The  tendency  is  toward  a  minimum  of 
creed  and  a  maximum  of  charity.  We  have  more 
faith  in  an  honest  life  than  in  an  acceptance  of  the 
Five  Institutes  of  Calvin,  and  would  feel  safer  at 
the  judgment-bar  of  God  with  an  honorable  busi- 
ness record  behind  us  than  wath  all  the  theological 
decisions  of  the  Nicene  Council.  There  is  extant 
no  repudiation  of  Christianity,  but  on  the  other 
hand  a  wide  and  deep  loyalty  to  the  moral  law  as 


238  HERALD    SERMONS. 

announced  by  Christ.  It  is  not  an  age  of  doubt, 
but  it  is  a  tlioughtful  age.  No  men  since  the  sun 
shone  on  Eden  have  ever  had  a  more  biting  hunger 
or  so  unquenchable  a  thirst  for  God's  truth,  both 
respecting  this  life  and  the  other,  than  now. 

There  is  a  universal  wish,  therefore,  that  the 
church,  which  has  been  so  brave  in  times  past, 
may  take  the  leadership  of  the  people,  as  Moses 
did,  show  them  the  way  through  this  desert  of 
hard  work,  and  give  them  the  promise  of  green 
fields  beyond  the  Jordan  of  death. 

Why  should  the  church  allow  itself  to  be  split 
into  factions  by  theological  differences  when  every 
faction  has  the  same  general  purpose  in  view  and 
all  are  working  for  the  same  object?  The  world 
asks  for  the  bread  of  Christ,  and  receives  the  stone 
of  sectarianism  in  its  stead.  It  longs  to  hear  of 
heaven,  and  will  listen  with  patient  ears  to  the 
proofs  of  immortality,  but  it  has  no  interest  in  the 
competition  and  rivalry  of  sects,  or  in  the  dog- 
matic and  doctrinal  side  of  religion. 

If  we  could  relegate  all  creeds  to  the  back- 
ground, imprison  them  within  the  limits  of  the 
student's  library,  cause  them  to  be  regarded  as 
simply  fruitful  subjects  for  investigation,  but  not 


THE  DUTY  OF  THE  CHURCH.      239 

necessary  to  the  moral  progress  of  the  commu- 
nity ;  if  we  could  bring  into  the  foreground,  as  the 
only  important  matter  for  consideration,  the  best 
way  to  embody  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  in  our 
laws  and  the  love  of  God  and  love  of  brother  man 
in  our  public  opinion,  the  church  would  really  rep- 
resent the  Christ,  and  the  revelations  of  the  New 
Testament  would  become  startlingly  new  and  fresh 
to  us.  The  clergy  would  find  thrilling  topics  in 
our  daily  life — topics  which  would  force  from  their 
lips  the  eloquence  of  warning  or  praise.  Corrup- 
tion would  find  in  the  pulpit  its  unrelenting  ene- 
my and  official  honor  its  mightiest  defense.  Re- 
ligion would  no  longer  be  in  the  clouds,  but  would 
walk  the  earth  armed  cap-a-pic  to  do  battle  in  the 
name  of  God  and  man. 

In  an  orchestra  there  may  be  forty  or  fifty  in- 
struments, and  they  are  all  necessary  to  the  pro- 
duction of  effective  music. 

Suppose  the  first  and  second  violins,  instead  of 
following  the  baton  of  the  leader,  should  enter 
into  rivalry  with  each  other  and  play  the  score 
according  to  their  personal  preference,  not  accord- 
ing to  instructions ;  suppose  the  cello  and  the  bass 
viol  should  exercise  the  same  privilege ;  suppose 


240  HERALD    SERMONS. 

the  drums  and  the  cornets  and  the  flutes  should 
demand  an  equal  right — what  would  result  ?  Not 
music,  but  intolerable  discord.  The  capacity  to 
render  a  symphony  of  Beethoven  or  Wagner  is  in 
that  orchestra,  and  if  its  members  are  subject  to 
the  leader  they  will  charm  and  inspire  the  audi- 
ence. But  if  each  one  plays  as  he  pleases  the 
auditorium  will  soon  be  emptied. 

The  simile  is  not  too  strong  when  applied  to 
the  church.  The  different  sects  are  playing  the 
same  melody,  and  the  world  is  anxious  to  listen. 
But  each  plays  as  he  thinks  best — the  Presbyte- 
rian in  one  key,  the  Methodist  in  another,  and  the 
Baptist  in  another.  Men  hope  for  harmony  and 
find  only  discord.  Little  wonder  that  complaints 
of  indifference  are  heard  and  churches  are  empty. 

If  the  clergy  will  forget  everything  else  and  re- 
member only  this  one  thing — that  men  are  hard 
pushed  and  need  help  and  comfort  and  good  cheer 
— then  creeds  will  be  whistled  down  the  wind, 
sectarianism  will  be  banished,  and  the  world  be  all 
the  better  for  it. 


THEATERS    AND    THEIR    INFLUENCE. 


**  To  everytliing  there  is  a  season,  and  a  time  to  every  purpose 
under  the  licaven. " — Eccles.  iii.  I. 


The  place  which  the  theater  occupies  in  our 
modern  society,  whether  we  are  to  stoutly  defend 
its  claims  or  humbly  apologize  for  it  as  a  neces- 
sary evil — this  is  a  question  which  is  always  in  the 
air.  It  has  excited  almost  as  much  controversy  as 
religion,  but  while  both  parties  have  been  equally 
honest  they  have  not  made  much  progress  toward 
an  agreement. 

The  peculiarity  of  the  debate  is  one  that  obtains 
with  no  other  subject  under  dispute,  for  while  the 
advocates  of  the  stage  speak  from  a  large  personal 
experience,  those  who  denounce  it  have  generally 
had  no  personal  experience  whatever.  If  tlie 
clergy,  whose  moti\'es  are  by  no  means  to  be  im- 
pugned, should  see  Mr.  Jefferson's  Kip  ]'aji  Winkle 
or  Mr.  Irving's  Bccket,  and  then  declare  that  the 
spectacle  lowers  the  moral  tone  of  the  audience, 
241 


242  HERALD    SERMONS. 

we  might  differ  with  them  in  opinion,  but  their 
judgment  would  deservedly  have  exceeding  weight. 

It  is  not  necessary  for  a  man  to  visit  a  gambling- 
dive  in  order  to  discover  that  it  is  harmful,  be- 
cause it  is  universally  conceded  that  games  of 
chance  are  an  unmitigated  evil  and  cannot  be  de- 
fended by  any  show  of  argument.  Dramatic  rep- 
resentation has  been  wrongly  classed  in  the  same 
category,  but  assuredly  it  does  not  belong  there. 
The  drama  is  not  essentially  evil,  and  must  there- 
fore be  criticized  by  the  effects  it  produces  on  so- 
ciety and  the  individual. 

What  are  some  of  these  effects  and  to  what  ex- 
tent are  they  to  be  deplored  ?  There  is  no  reason 
why  we  should  not  lay  aside  all  prejudice  and  pre- 
conceptions and  judge  the  case  simpl}^  on  its  mer- 
its. We  can  always  afford  to  be  fair,  and  there  is 
no  good  ground  for  being  unjust. 

First,  then,  it  is  charged  that  actors  and  ac- 
tresses have  a  code  of  morals  of  their  own,  and 
that  there  is  a  degree  of  looseness  in  it  which  is 
not  to  be  tolerated.  This  is  at  least  partly  true, 
and  it  is  unfortunate  that  it  is  true.  It  is  very 
desirable  that  both  actors  and  actresses  should  be 
above  reproach,  but  it  is  desirable  that  the  men 


THEATERS    AXD    THEIR    INFLUENCE.        243 

and  women  who  applaud  them  should  be  above 
reproach  also.  If  every  actor  were  a  Ba3-ard  the 
stage  would  undoubtedly  be  different  from  what 
it  is  ;  but  we  are  bound  to  add  that  if  every  man 
in  the  audience  were  a  Bayard  society  would  take 
on  a  different  complexion.  The  rule  which  is  ap- 
plied to  the  stage  should  be  used  elsewhere,  and 
it  is  not  quite  generous  to  spurn  an  actor  for  a 
course  of  life  which  is — such  is  the  laxity  of  pub- 
he  morals — easily  condoned  in  other  people. 

There  is  no  excuse  for  immorality  anywhere, 
neither  on  the  stage  nor  in  business  life  nor  in  the 
fashionable  world.  If,  however,  a  Pennine  crusade 
were  to  be  undertaken  and  the  attempt  made  to 
reconstruct  human  nature,  it  might  be  w^ell  to 
begin  with  the  stage,  but  it  would  never  do  to  end 
with  it ;  and  we  venture  to  say  that  we  can  name 
a  score  of  actors  and  actresses  who  would  hail  such 
a  movement  with  enthusiasm,  for  good  men  and 
women  in  a  profession  ought  not  to  suffer  for 
the  shortcomings  of  the  unworthy.  This  is  true 
both  behind  and  in  front  of  the  footlights. 

We  might  refer  to  the  late  Mr.  Booth's  career 
in  illustration  of  this  fact.  Me  was  a  noble,  self- 
sacrificing,  charitable,  and  patriotic  citizen  as  well 


244  HERALD    SERMONS. 

as  a  great  actor.  Take  his  life  as  a  whole  and 
there  are  few  men  in  any  profession  who  have  ex- 
erted a  more  manly  and  uplifting  influence.  He 
had  a  great  soul,  and  richly  deserved  not  only  the 
fame  he  won,  but  also  the  respect  of  the  world, 
which  was  so  cheerfully  and  abundantly  given. 

Actors  and  actresses  are  public  property.  What- 
ever they  do  is  known.  If  they  have  faults  or  if 
they  commit  a  crime  against  existing  customs  it 
is  at  once  spread  broadcast.  A  business  man,  a 
lawyer,  a  doctor  may  be  equally  guilty,  but  his 
obliquity  is  hidden.  The  world  sees  the  worst 
side  of  the  actor's  character  always,  and  forms  its 
judgment  from  that  side  ;  it  sees  the  best  side  of 
every  one  else,  and  frequently  overestimates  his 
worth.  The  actor  can  hide  nothing;  other  men 
in  the  community  can  hide  a  great  deal. 

We  are  defending  no  one  by  these  statements, 
but  simply  trying  to  tell  the  plain,  unvarnished 
truth.  The  stage  is  nothing  more  to  us  than  one 
of  the  factors  of  our  social  life,  which  we  would 
criticize  with  candor  and  a  regard  for  the  general 
welfare.  But  we  must  needs  be  careful  not  to 
overblame  one  class  whose  faults  are  made  glar- 
ing by  circumstances  and  ignore  the  faults  of  other 


THEATERS    AND    THEIR    INFLUENCE.        245 

classes  who  heive  the  opportunity  to  conceal  their 
misdoings. 

Second,  it  is  charged  that  the  theater  is  an  un- 
wholesome stimulant  which  cannot  fail  to  do  in- 
jury. If  this  be  true  it  is  a  very  serious  matter. 
But  is  it  true?  It  is  a  question  which  each  one 
must  answer  for  himself,  and  his  answer  should 
govern  his  conduct.  If  a  thing  is  not  wrong  in 
itself,  then  it  must  be  judged  solely  by  the  effects 
it  produces. 

It  is  not  merely  the  love  of  amusement,  but  the 
actual  necessity  of  it,  which  sends  most  people  to 
the  theater.  A  few  hours'  respite  from  business 
cares,  and,  so  far  as  women  are  concerned,  from 
the  harassments  of  domestic  life,  is  very  desirable, 
and  in  most  theaters  it  can  be  had  without  injury. 
A  hearty  laugh  at  a  farce,  an  evening's  nonsense 
which  drags  one  out  of  the  ruts  of  daily  routine 
and  forces  one  to  forget  for  the  time  being  that 
the  morrow  has  heavy  burdens,  is  not  only  inno- 
cent, but  helpful. 

We  venture  to  declare  that  in  this  regard  the 
stage  is  accomplishing  great  good,  and  fills  a  place 
for  which  there  is  no  substitute.  Instead  of  abol- 
ishing  it,    if   society   were   itself  pure   enough   to 


246  HERALD    SERMONS. 

demand  only  the  best  kind  of  drama,  the  theater 
would  respond  at  once,  for  the  manager  is  a  busi- 
ness man,  who  must  please  the  public  in  order  to 
reap  success.  The  theater  never  leads,  but  always 
follows  its  patrons.  They  find  there  just  what 
pleases  them,  and  are  themselves  responsible  if  the 
stage  falls  below  par. 

A  clean  play  can  harm  no  one ;  but  an  unclean 
play,  and,  for  that  matter,  an  unclean  anything 
else,  whether  it  is  found  in  politics,  in  law,  or  in 
society,  is  not  to  be  tolerated.  That  is  the  only 
rule  by  which  our  judgment  should  be  controlled. 


A    PROVIDENTIAL    MAN. 

"  And  the  Lord  shall  guide  thee  continually." — Isa.  Iviii.  ii. 

February  12th  brings  us  once  more  to  the 
anniversary  of  Abraham  Lincohi's  birth.  The  day 
will  be  crowded  with  associations  of  grave  import 
to  the  citizens  of  this  Republic,  for  under  his  lead- 
ership the  country  passed  into  an  epoch  of  tragedy 
and  through  it  to  the  grandest  victory  ever  achieved 
by  man  for  man. 

Not  opposing  armies  merely,  but  opposing  ideas 
stood  face  to  face  on  the  battle-field,  and  when 
the  struggle  ended  we  were  presented  with  this 
curious  historic  anomaly,  namely,  that  the  van- 
quished had  been  blessed  by  defeat  and  the  victors 
by  their  triumph. 

With  a  Southern  oligarchy  based  on  slavery, 
and  a  Northern  republic  based  on  freedom,  oc- 
cupying contiguous  territory,  the  experiment  of 
popular  sovereignty  would  have  been  brought  to 
.speedy  peril.      The  defeat  of  our  enemies,  thcre- 

247 


248  HERALD    SERMONS. 

fore,  was  necessary  not  only  to  the  perpetuity  of 
the  Union,  but  to  their  own  moral  and  political 
salvation. 

The  thrones  of  Europe  would  have  acquired  a 
new  lease  of  life  had  our  cause  suffered  disaster. 
The  victory  of  that  cause  has  dimmed  the  jewels 
in  every  crown,  doomed  kings  to  exile,  and  vindi- 
cated the  right  of  the  people  everywhere  to  gov- 
ern themselves.  If  Lee  had  not  surrendered  his 
sword  to  Grant  the  French  Republic  might  not 
have  been  born,  and  the  people  of  the  Continent 
might  not  have  demanded  an  extended  suffrage 
for  a  full  century  to  come. 

Lincoln's  election  was  much  less  the  act  of  our 
voters  than  it  was  the  act  of  Providence.  He  was 
a  man  unknown  and  untried  at  a  time  when  the 
rumblings  of  revolution  made  the  nation  trem- 
ble. That  the  emergency  was  threatening  every 
one  knew;  that  Lincoln  would  be  great  enough 
to  meet  it  nobody  knew.  In  the  popular  mind 
there  was  a  disparity  between  the  man  and  the 
occasion,  and  the  lips  of  prophecy  wxre  sealed 
through  timidity.  We  hoped  for  the  best,  but 
feared  the  w^orst. 

If  Lincoln  had  been  possessed  of  antecedents 


A    PROVIDENTIAL    MAX.  249 

we  might  have  been  more  hopeful,  but  he  had 
none.  He  came  from  the  gloaming  of  an  unknown 
past,  and,  as  he  himself  declared  with  a  degree  of 
sadness,  had  no  ancestry  at  all,  much  less  an  an- 
cestry to  boast  of.  His  youth  had  been  spent  in 
menial  employment,  his  reputation  was  that  of  a 
country  lawyer,  and  his  election  was  apparently 
an  accident  of  party  politics. 

But  Abraham  Lincoln  was  chosen  to  be  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  by  the  Almighty  through 
the  ballots  of  the  American  people.  We  did  not 
know  that  at  first,  and  indeed  did  not  find  it  out 
until  the  fatal  bullet  transformed  him  into  a  mar- 
tyr. When  we  looked  at  his  stern  face  as  he  lay 
in  state,  however,  and  then  recalled  the  past,  the 
light  fell  on  our  eyes  and  we  saw  what  God  and 
our  brave  sons  had  done  for  us. 

Lincoln  was  endowed  with  the  wisdom  of  the 
situation.  He  was  not  the  leader  of  the  people, 
did  not  attempt  to  create  public  opinion  by  a  pol- 
icy of  daring  and  assurance,  but  obscured  himself 
in  the  shadow  of  the  popular  will.  A  smaller  m.an 
would  have  issued  the  Proclamation  of  Emancipa- 
tion months  before  it  .saw  the  light,  but  he  waited. 
*'  I  am  your  servant,"  he  said  to  the  North  ;  *'  it  is 


250  HERALD    SERMONS. 

for  you,  not  me,  to  say  when  that  aggressive  step 
shall  be  taken."  It  was  not  Lincoln,  therefore, 
who  devised  that  marvelously  strategic  movement ; 
it  was  the  people  themselves,  and  it  was  not  adopted 
a  single  instant  before  they  were  ready  for  it.  The 
radicals  were  restless,  the  conservatives  groaned, 
but  he  simply  said :  *'  This  is  your  war,  not  mine. 
Tell  me  when  to  do  it  and  it  shall  be  done." 

It  is  our  privilege  to  believe  that  God  is  inter- 
ested in  human  affairs  and  that  He  is  a  factor  in 
every  great  national  exigency.  Religion  consists 
of  worthless  phraseology  unless  we  can  feel  His 
presence  in  the  concerns  of  life.  Great  men  do 
not  come  of  their  own  accord,  nor  are  they  the 
product  of  circumstances  by  a  kind  of  spontaneous 
generation;  they  are  created  for  a  purpose  and 
sent  to  achieve  it.  This  is  not  man's  world,  but 
God's  world,  and  events  are  guided  to  their  ulti- 
mate issue  as  the  pilot  at  the  helm  steers  a  stately 
ship  into  harbor. 

It  is  impossible  not  to  see  God's  providence  in 
the  life  of  Lincoln,  and  sacrilege  to  deny  its  po- 
tency. No  other  man  in  the  country  would  have 
been  suited  to  the  hour.  A  larger  man — that  is, 
one  more  ambitious  personally — or  a  smaller  one 


A    PROVIDENTIAL    MAX.  25  1 

— that  is,  one  less  courai^eous — might  have  lost 
all  for  which  we  took  up  arms.  He  had  the  exact 
mental  and  moral  stature  required  by  the  duty 
which  fell  to  his  lot. 

Could  such  a  happy  union  of  man  and  occasion 
be  an  accident  or  even  a  coincidence  ?  Was  Wash- 
ington a  coincidence  or  an  accident?  When  the 
right  man  comes  at  the  right  moment  it  is  hard 
to  believe  that  behind  him  is  nothing  but  blind 
chance.  On  the  contrary,  it  is  easy  to  feel  that 
an  unseen  Being  is  above  us  all,  and  that  when 
something  greatly  needed  is  to  be  done  He  selects 
the  man  to  do  it. 

Lincoln  was  God's  choice  as  well  as  the  choice 
of  the  American  people.  W^e  elected  him  Presi- 
dent, but  God  foresaw  the  struggle  and  prepared 
him  to  bring  it  to  a  successful  issue.  He  was  so 
exceptional  a  man  that  we  cannot  account  for  him 
in  any  other  way. 

Lincoln  has  gone,  but  the  Being  who  gave  him 
to  us  in  our  dire  strait  is  still  with  us  and  will  send 
other  men  to  do  their  special  work  when  the  hour 
calls  for  them. 


-^^^' 


J' 

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5  The  Knowledge  of  God, 

And  Other  Sermons.     By  William  Walsham  How, 

D.D.,  Bishop  of  Wakefield.     17  Sermons,  220  pages. 

Portrait.     $1.25. 

"  Marked  not  only  by  the  Bishop's  well-known  power  of  putting 

difficult  truths  into  '  plain  words,'  but  by  that  loving  and  persuasive 

spirit  which  gives  him  his    great  charm  as  a  preacher." 

— London  Guardian. 

6  Light  and  Peace. 

Sermons  and  Addresses.  By  Henry  Robert  Rey- 
nolds, D.D.  13  Sermons,  224  pages.  Portrait.  $1.25. 
"  Dr.  Reynolds  belongs  by  long  possessed  rights  in  this  series. 
He  is  an  English  Congiegationalist,  since  i860  Principal  of  Lady 
Huntingdon's  College,  Cheshunt,  Herts.  He  has  been  prolific  with 
his  pen  in  many  directions.  The  sermons  in  this  collection  are 
elevated  in  theme  and  treatment.  They  touch  the  noblest  themes  in 
a  noble  manner,  and  with  much  imaginative  power  and  eloquent 
force. " — Independent. 

7  The  Journey  of  Life. 

By  W.    J.    Knox   Little,  M.A.     ii   Sermons,    226 

pages.  Portrait.  ^^-25. 
"  The  friends  and  admirers  of  the  Rev.  W.  J.  Knox  Little,  Canon 
of  Worcester,  will  welcome  this  collection  of  clever  sermons  from 
him.  The  sermons  all  bear  on  some  phase  of  the  solemn  thought 
suggested  in  the  title,  and  bring  up  practical  points  which  Canon 
Little  knows  well  how  to  handle  in  a  direct,  wise  and  helpful 
manner. " — Independent. 

8  Messages  to  the  Multitude. 

By    C.    H.    Spurgeon.       12     Sermons,    318    pages. 
Portrait.     $1.25. 
'*  This  volume  shows  the  great  preacher  at  his  best  in  the  treatment 
of  the  Divine  Word,  and  it  will  be,  with  the  lifehke  portrait  of  the 
preacher,  a  valuable  memorial  to  the  multitudes  of  his  admirers." 

— N.   V.   Observer. 


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